I Wanna Grow Old With You
by SofiaSofiaSofia
Summary: This is a different take on Callie and Arizona's car accident and its aftermath. Quite a few things are changed for the sake of the story, so it is different than what happened with their accident on the show. What if Arizona didn't walk away from the accident with only minor injuries?
1. Help

**This is a different take on Callie and Arizona's car accident and its aftermath. Quite a few things are changed for the sake of the story, so it is different than what happened with their accident on the show. What if Arizona didn't walk away from the accident with only minor injuries?**

**Future chapters are likely to contain more content, but I felt like this was the best way to introduce this story. It is rated T just to be on the safe side, since I have yet to write the entire story.**

** I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for reading._  
_**

* * *

_Where am I? _

This was the first thought that ran through her mind. A haze of confusion and pain had its grip on her, making answering this question harder than it should have been. It had only been a few seconds, but it felt like hours since she had opened her eyes. Her mind was telling her that something was wrong, but she was unclear, not her usual quick-thinking self.

_The car? But going where? What hurts? And why?_

Adrenaline began to run through her veins and it suddenly clicked.

"Arizona!" she yelled out.

The blond was laying on the hood of the car with blood and broken glass surrounding her. She didn't appear to be moving, but Callie could hear soft, terrified whimpers.

"Arizona, you're gonna be okay!" she called out to her, trying, but failing to get out of the car.

If she hadn't been pregnant, she probably could have managed to slip out of the small opening that she was able to create by pushing the door open as far as it would go, but it wasn't possible in her current state. She tried and tried, mostly because she was panicking and she wanted out of the vehicle as soon as possible, but she finally decided that it wasn't going to happen.

She looked back to the backseat where her phone had been tossed, but it was even less likely that she'd be able to get all the way back there to get it. She reached and tried to grab it without really being able to see it, yet all she felt was a sharp pain as a piece of glass cut into her hand. After that, she simply removed her safety belt and sat there, beginning a prayer in Spanish. For now, it seemed like all she could do. If she started screaming for help, she and Arizona would both lose whatever cool they had left and she didn't want that to happen.

She could see the truck driver making his way over. He appeared to be uninjured. This was good. He could help them, she hoped.

"Are you okay?" he called to Callie as he was on the phone with 911.

He had already told them about Arizona and Callie was sure they were on their way.

"Is she still awake?" Callie asked.

"Uh, yeah," he nodded. "She...she is."

"Good," Callie said softly.

By now, numerous other people were pulling over and approaching, trying to see if there was anything that they could do to assist.

"She's pregnant!" one of them, a man in his early thirties, yelled to the truck driver when he noticed the Latina's growing midsection.

The truck driver relayed this information to the dispatcher and then a list of questions seemed to come flying at Callie just as fast as the truck had.

_How far along is she? Has she felt the baby move? Has she had any contractions?_

"Stop," the man who had noticed Callie's baby bump said.

"But –" the truck driver protested.

He said something else, but Callie didn't know what it was. She was pretty sure she had missed quite a lot of the conversation that was going on amongst all of the people who had come to their aid and the few people who were simply gawking at the wreckage.

"My name's Will," the man smiled, doing his best to zone everything else out and just talk to the woman who was stuck in the car. "What's yours?"

"Callie," she said. "But help Arizona."

"What?"

"Arizona," she said. "She needs –"

"Help is coming for all of you," he said. "I just need to know some things so that the medics can give you and your baby the best care possible. How far along are you?"

"Thirty-four weeks," she said, starting to shake now.

"Great," he said. "You're doing great. Have you had any contractions?" he questioned.

"No," she told him.

"Good," he smiled. "That's good."

"The baby hasn't kicked."

"Okay," he said. "The ambulance is gonna be here soon."

"Is she…she still awake?" Callie asked.

"Looks like it," he nodded.

"Tell them not to try to…to move…move her."

"I'm sure dispatch told them that," he said.

"How would you...?"

"I'm a med student," he said. "In my last year."

"Oh."

"And I'm guessing you know a thing or two about medicine?" he asked, now just trying to keep her talking since he really wasn't sure what the extent of her injuries was, but he didn't want her to slip into unconsciousness. The more she could talk, the more he could try to understand about her neuro function.

"I'm a…surgeon."

"At which hospital?"

"Seattle…Grace…Mercy West."

"We'll get you and your friend there soon, okay?" he asked, looking down at his watch and wondering where the hell the ambulance was.

"Fiancé," she corrected him. "We're…engaged."

"Well, congratulations," he smiled. "A wedding and a baby, huh? Pretty big stuff."

"If she…she lives," Callie said. "Will, go –"

"I don't want to do anything there," he said. "I don't…this is my first time actually handling anything like this and I don't wanna do more harm than good. But the ambulance will be here soon, and thankfully, the medics have more practice than I do. But she's awake. That's good."

"Yeah."

"So, have you and Arizona picked a name?" he asked.

Maybe it wasn't the smoothest of segues, but he really wanted to get her mind off of medicine and all of the injuries that both she and her fiancé were facing.

"I'm trapped in here and you….baby names, Will?" she asked.

"I'm trying here," he said. "And when my wife was pregnant, baby names were all she ever wanted to talk about. I bet you and Arizona have a list a mile long."

"No," she replied. "We don't."

Getting Arizona to agree to a baby shower – let alone a list of names – had taken this long. Their relationship had faced challenges that most couples just didn't face, so Callie assumed Arizona simply hadn't really been in the mood to search for baby names. Still, she had suggested bringing a few baby name books along with them on their weekend getaway to the bed and breakfast just about forty minutes outside of Seattle, but that wasn't how Arizona wanted to spend their little "babymoon." Callie sort of assumed that Baby's name would find them when he or she arrived. She had learned to come to terms with that.

"Oh."

Finally, the sound everyone had been waiting to hear came. Sirens could be heard in the distance, meaning that the ambulance would be arriving soon. The entire thing, from start to finish, had taken less than ten minutes, but it felt so, so much longer than that.

"Hear that?" Will asked Callie. "They'll get you out of here and get you help."

"Good."

"It is good," he smiled. "You're gonna be okay."

"You shouldn't…promise that."

"Well, it's what I believe," he told her.

"Good."

"Hang in there, okay?"

"Is Arizona awake?" she asked again.

Will looked to the people who were up near Arizona. They clearly had terrified looks on their faces, but he could tell that Callie's fiancé was still awake because none of their expressions seemed more intense than they had previously. Nothing appeared to be worse.

"Yep," he nodded.

"I need you to go tell…tell her I'm sorry. And I love…love her."

Will didn't even know what the apology was about, but he knew that it didn't even matter.

"She knows," he told her. "Trust me, she knows."

"But –"

"People who love each other…whatever else happens doesn't matter."

Callie thought back to the night when Arizona had proudly declared that their unborn child was _her_ baby. She had said something very similar.

"I don't want her to –"

"Right now, let's just focus on getting you out of here," Will said, as the ambulance pulled up. "I'm gonna get out of the way, but I'll wait in my car right over there, okay?"

"Okay."


	2. The Damage

**I just want to thank everybody for the response I got to this story. I can't wait for you guys to see it all unfold and I hope you like it.**

* * *

Everything seemed to happen so fast. Arizona was removed from the hood of the car and rushed to the hospital while Callie was still being freed from their vehicle. A separate ambulance was sent for her, but her injuries appeared to be minor. This was confirmed when she arrived at Seattle Grace Mercy West. She had hit her head, but her neurological exam revealed no concerns. She was told that she would be sore for awhile, that she would need an ultrasound and a few stitches in her hand, but that she would be okay.

"I'm fine," she said. "I wanna be with Arizona."

"Arizona's in surgery," Lexie told her. "It'll be a few hours before she's out, but she's in good hands."

"I know that," she replied.

"Dr. Fields is delivering a baby right now, so I'm gonna do the ultrasound, okay? And then we'll fix up that hand."

"No," Callie said.

"What? Callie, you really need –"

"Yes to the ultrasound," she clarified. "But just bandage the hand up. I can't sit here while Arizona's…"

Her words trailed off and a new round of sobs began. She hadn't been overly emotional until she was pulled from the car; it was almost as if it started to become real when she was finally able to see the full extent of the damage.

"Okay," Lexie agreed, against her better judgment.

"What are you gonna do?" Will asked. "Go sit in the gallery?"

He had followed the second ambulance, figuring that Arizona's injuries would require the most attention; knowing that it would be all hands on deck when they got to the hospital, he wanted to make sure Callie had somebody. Obviously, doctors would make sure she was physically okay, but he was more worried about her emotional state. If sitting with her and waiting could help even a little, he would do it. He wasn't sure why exactly, but he felt like he had to finish what he started for Callie and her fiancé.

"Who are you?" Lexie asked.

"Will –"

"He was at the scene," Callie said.

"Oh," Lexie smiled.

She exposed Callie's belly and began the ultrasound. Callie had told her that she had felt some movement, so that was a reassuring sign. Still, there could be other problems that put the pregnancy at risk.

"You don't have to do this," Callie said.

"An ultrasound?" she asked. "Yes, I do. Callie, I know you want to get to Arizona as fast as possible, but…"

"No, I mean I'm sorry it has to be you."

Callie had done her best not to mention her pregnancy too much in front of Lexie, figuring that it was understandably a touchy subject for the young surgeon.

"What happened between Mark and I doesn't mean I don't want you to have a healthy baby. I'd never wish…I'm doing my job and it's fine."

"Okay."

In order to do the ultrasound, Lexie had to place the probe over the spot on Callie's belly where the seatbelt had tightened and left a red mark.

"Ouch," she said when she felt some sudden pain due to this sore spot.

"I'm sorry," Lexie replied, biting her lip. "But Baby looks good," she told her. "Perfect heart rate, nice movement, adequate fluid level…"

"Good."

Lexie turned the screen around as she printed off a picture to give Callie. The monitor had been facing her just in case there was a problem, but now there was no reason that the expectant mom couldn't see her baby's image. Lexie hoped it might even help relax her a little.

"Take a look," she smiled. "Pretty cute kid, huh?"

"Gorgeous," Callie agreed.

The baby had filled out quite a bit since her last ultrasound, so its features now appeared to look much more like they would when the Latina gave birth in a few weeks. For a moment, Callie was focused only on the sweet face that was now on the screen.

"Looks like you," Will said.

"You really don't have to be here."

"Do you have anybody else?" he asked.

"My best friend," she replied.

"Mark's in the OR now, I think," Lexie said.

"Oh."

"I can stay," Will told her.

"Thanks," she replied, not even bothering to protest.

She didn't even know Will's last name, but he had made her feel better in the car and he was helping keep her sane now. She didn't understand why she was finding comfort in the stranger, but she didn't really care. He was right: all of her friends were busy. Most of them were working on her fiancé. She didn't exactly have anybody to keep her company.

"No problem," he said.

"Are you sure I can't fix up that hand?" Lexie asked.

"My fiancé is in surgery right now," she said. "Compared to that, the hand's nothing."

"Fiancé?"

"She proposed," Callie said. "She just has no idea that I've accepted."

"Oh."

* * *

"This is a mess," Teddy said, shaking her head.

Arizona had extensive injuries and everyone in the operating room was on edge. Not only was this a challenging case, but the woman on the table was their friend and colleague. The stakes were high and the pressure was intense.

"Tell me about it," Derek agreed.

"Poker faces," Bailey said, as she glanced up and saw Callie and a man she didn't recognize sitting up in the gallery.

She knew that they had to appear as if they had this under control. The nerves and uncertainty were probably causing them to seem frantic, and this was no good now that they had such an important audience.

"What?" Cristina asked.

"Torres is up there," she explained as they worked. "The last thing she needs is to see us in a panic down here."

"Bailey's right," Owen replied. "We all need to step back, take a breath and focus. We know what we're doing and we just have to forget that this is Robbins."

"Why is Torres up there?" Richard asked. "She really shouldn't be –"

"At least we know she's fine," Meredith commented. "And trust me, she's not going anywhere. This is the closest she can get to Arizona, and she's not gonna leave."

"Great," he said.

"We can't worry about her," Cristina said. "Not right now."

"Who is that with her?" April asked.

"Focus," Bailey replied. "Who cares about that right now? Right now, our job is to figure out how we're gonna give her back her girlfriend."

"There's just so much damage," Teddy said.

* * *

About an hour had passed and Callie and Will were still up in the gallery, both of them unable to take their eyes off of the scene down below. Callie was desperately searching for any positive sign, but it seemed like she was going to get very little good news.

"This is the first surgery you've ever seen, isn't it?" Callie asked him.

He hadn't said it, but she knew that he was interested in becoming a surgeon, not just any other kind of doctor. He was looking down to the operating room beneath them with a familiar curiosity she herself had once displayed.

"Yeah," he nodded, looking away when he realized she saw that he was intrigued by the sight.

"It's okay," Callie said. "It's...amazing. I mean, they can take someone as hurt as her and fix it."

"Yep."

"At least I hope."

"You've got Derek Shepherd down there," he said. "Shepherd's one of the best neuro –"

"I know."

"Right."

"You know," she said. "Since you asked, I keep thinking about how I have no idea what to name this baby."

"You still have time."

"But I want Arizona to like it."

"She will," he said. "Nobody hates their kid's name. They think of their kid and they love their kid, so they don't hate the name."

"But I wanna know what names she loves."

"Well, ask her when she wakes up."

"If," Callie said. "If she wakes up."

"Yeah."

"How did you and your wife pick a name?"

"I wanted names that sounded like they belonged on princesses," he smiled. "And I finally got my wife to agree when she saw our first daughter."

"You have little girls?"

"Vivienne's two-and-a-half and Bridget's sixteen months," he nodded.

Callie smiled. "I think I'm having a girl."

"You don't know?"

"The surprise is the best part," she told him. "But I think it's a girl. At first, I thought boy, but now every time I picture Baby, she's a girl. Just like her Mommy, even though it looks like me. Or at least I think it does."

He smiled.

"She has to be okay," she said.

"I know."

"She will," Callie heard another voice tell her.

She turned and saw Mark.

"You're supposed to be at some bed and breakfast right now," he said as he sat down.

"And I wish I was," she replied. "More than anything."

"But Robbins is gonna be okay."

"We were fighting," she said. "Over you."

"Sorry."

"She tossed my phone into the backseat so that I couldn't text you back, and I kept demanding that she get it. She was pulling over, because I think she'd finally had enough of hearing me tell her to, and suddenly she just…proposed. Just as she undid her seatbelt, but just a second or two before we were completely stopped. And before I could even say yes, the truck…"

"Oh," he said. "Well, Robbins'll recover and you'll get married. Look forward to that."

"Baby's okay," she said, handing him the ultrasound picture.

"I know," he replied. "Lexie told me."

"You're not avoiding her?"

"Not when I find out that you and Robbins got in a wreck," he said. "I hadn't even bothered to have the scrub nurse check my pager. I figured my surgery was too important to…I'm sorry."

"How could you have known about any of this?" she asked.

"But Lexie was waiting for me outside my OR."

"Oh."

"So, are you just gonna keep bleeding through that bandage or what?" he asked, as he looked at her hand.

"It's fine."

"So she says," Will disputed.

"Who are you?" Mark questioned.

"He was at the scene," Callie said. "He's a med student."

"Well, how about we send the med student to get you something to eat and I stitch up that hand?"

"It's not even deep."

"Still," he said. "I'll get supplies and do it here."

"Fine," she replied. "But no food. I'm not even close to hungry."

"I'll get you some water," Will said. "Then I think I'll take off, okay? Now that you've got somebody here?"

Now he was feeling out of place. He figured that this was the best friend Callie had spoken of earlier, and he was still not much more than a stranger.

"Sure," she said. "You've been great, but you've got some girls to get home to."

"That I do," he nodded.

"Thanks, Will."

"No problem," he said. "I can stay if you still need –"

"No, you're right," Callie said. "I'll be okay."

* * *

Six hours later, she sat in Arizona's hospital room fiddling with the cup in her hand. Will's phone number was written on it, along with a message that said that he wanted Callie to call him when Arizona woke up, so that he could stop by and meet the fiancé she spoke so highly of.

This made Callie think of the night that she had come home with another woman's number still on her hand and told Arizona that she couldn't stop wondering if that woman wanted children, since Arizona didn't.

They had come such a long way since then. Even considering the circumstances in which this baby was made, Callie had no doubt at all that her Peds. surgeon fiancé was looking forward to their little one. Sure, maybe names, showers, and Mark's involvement annoyed her, but she still lit up whenever Baby was mentioned. Now, however, Callie had a completely new problem. She wondered if Arizona would ever be able to be the mom that she now wanted to be.

"Callie?"

Derek's voice drew her out of this time of reflection.

"What?"

"Did you hear me?"

"What did you say?" she asked.

"Now we just wait and see," he said.

"But there's a chance she won't wake up?"

"There is," he said. "But there is also a chance that she will."

"What can we do?"

"At this point, wait. If nothing happens on its own, we can try a few more things. The thing is that none of them are actually proven to work. Some people think they do, and others don't see the point."

"And you?"

"I'm not sure what I think."

"I need hope, Derek."

"I wish I had better news," he said. "But Altman says her heart is gonna hold up."

"I know, but if she's brain dead –"

"She's not brain dead," Alex said as he walked in. "She's not, right?"

"She's not," Derek answered.

"But she could become –" Callie told them, tearing up again.

"She won't," Alex insisted.

He handed her a sandwich.

"Sloan had something come up with a patient," he said. "But he threw this at me in the hall and told me to give it to you."

"I'm not hungry."

"Robbins is my teacher and she'd be so mad at me if I didn't make sure you took care of yourself and that baby."

"Fine," Callie said, unwrapping her dinner.

Derek excused himself and left the room after his pager beeped.

"I'll get you some water," he said, taking the cup from her.

He noticed Will's message.

"Robbins wouldn't like this," he teased.

"He was on the scene," Callie explained. "And he's happily married. Plus, we're engaged so…"

"Dude, it was a joke," he smiled.

"I know."

"And congratulations," he told her. "On the engagement."

"Thanks."

"There's no way Robbins'll end up a vegetable when the other choice is waking up and marrying you," he said. "She loves you."

"Yeah."


	3. Keep Hoping

Callie woke up two mornings later and stretched out as much as she could possibly stretch on the couch that had been put in Arizona's room for her to sleep on. The cots that most family members of patients were offered had proved to be far too uncomfortable for her, given the fact that she was in her last trimester of pregnancy. Her fellow Attending friends had offered her the couch that was usually kept in their lounge, figuring she needed it far more than they did.

"Good morning," she smiled, lowering the rail on her love's bed so that she could lean down far enough to kiss her lips.

She had been hoping that her fiancé would awaken this morning, but Arizona was still in the deep, deep sleep that she had been in since the day of the accident. At first, it had been okay; being slow to wake up after brain surgery was a common – maybe even a normal – part of the recovery process. However, as the hours, and then the days, passed the situation became more and more ominous. Arizona's state could now officially be described as "comatose."

Callie yawned.

"You need to wake up so that I can sleep," she told Arizona as she stroked her arm gently. "As if this pregnancy wasn't making that hard enough, now I'm worried about you. I was tossing and turning all night on that couch. Don't get me wrong, it's better than the cot, but I say you just wake up and recover so that we can both sleep in our bed and I can stop freaking out about you. I'm sure it'd be much more comfortable for you to be at home, too."

Callie started tearing up again at the sight of Arizona lying so still and helpless in the bed. Somewhere inside that body was the bubbly, lively Pediatric surgeon she had fallen for. How, in a matter of just days, had she gone from that person to this one, who couldn't even moisten her own dry, cracked lips?

She gave herself a few seconds to be emotional, and then pushed it aside once again. She had to do this many, many times a day. She let out her emotions when she was alone, and even when she was in the company of anyone but Arizona. However, she refused to let too many tears fall in this room. They weren't exactly sure how much of her surroundings Arizona was aware of, but Callie wasn't about to risk letting her be surrounded by sorrow if she could help it. They needed to surround her with as much positivity as possible if she was going to overcome this. Callie didn't want it to seem like they were already in mourning, even though parts of them were.

"Your mom bought a frame for Baby's picture," she told her, picking up the framed ultrasound photo and holding it for her fiancé. She knew that she wasn't able to actually look at it, but she had to talk about something, and the baby seemed like as good a topic as any this morning. "Just from the gift shop downstairs, but it's cute, I think. We've been keeping it next to your bed."

Arizona's parents flew in yesterday morning, hoping that they would receive great news by the time that they arrived. They were discouraged when that hadn't happened, but they weren't giving up either. They had already lost one child and that heartache was still always with them. They had no idea how to possibly handle losing both of their children.

"They'll be here soon," she told her. "Your parents. They're just staying at the apartment since I'm here."

She always paused, waiting for a reply, and then realized that Arizona wouldn't say anything because she still wasn't able to. This had happened more than a few times now, but it never got easier to accept.

"They sat here with us all day yesterday," she said. "Your mom was telling stories about when you and Tim were kids, hoping we'd get a response from you. Maybe you can do something today? Anything? Please?"

Nothing.

"I used to like watching you sleep," she told her. "You look really beautiful when you're sleeping, but you know what's even better? I wanna see you open your eyes. I miss those eyes, Arizona. They're too amazing for me to never see them again."

Callie hated feeling like she was talking to herself, but she didn't want to just sit there and not talk to Arizona. Her voice might have been able to help her pull through, and if that was even the slightest possibility, she was going to become just as chatty as Arizona had once been.

"Your mom's totally in love with this baby already," she told her, feeling their little one move within her. "She was hoping to feel some kicking yesterday, but every time I told her where to put her hand, Baby would stop moving. Stubborn little thing. Your dad's convinced it's a boy. Never mind the fact that everyone we know, excluding Mark, is insistent that it's a girl. Nope. According to Grandpa and Dad, it's a boy. Somehow I think they're biased. I don't know, maybe we are, too. Either way, it doesn't matter very much, does it?"

She heard something behind her and realized that Derek had been standing in the doorway.

"Oh, sorry," she said.

"Don't apologize," he told her. "Talking to her is great. I just didn't want to interrupt."

"Still nothing," Callie reported as Derek began a basic neurological exam. "What does this mean, Derek?"

"It means we keep waiting," he said. "And I know that's not the answer you want to hear, but it's the truth."

"That other stuff you mentioned trying if she didn't wake up," Callie inquired. "What is it? What do we do? I know you said none of it's proven to actually work, but I need her to wake up. I'll do anything, Shepherd."

"Some doctors believe that introducing familiar stimulus helps," Derek said. "A favourite song, a familiar touch, certain smells she likes…"

"Could we be risking overdoing it?" she asked. "If I blast music and fill the room with flowers that smell amazing, and all of that, could it do more harm than good?"

"The coma has her in such a sedated place that that's doubtful. We don't know for sure, but I'd wouldn't worry about it being too much. Right now, she's so deep into this state that you're getting no response at all. I can't see music and flowers and touch or whatever else you try doing harm."

"Okay."

* * *

"_It's official!" Callie called into the living room where Arizona was reading an article she had found on bonding with new babies._

"_What is?" Arizona smiled, getting up and walking into their bedroom to find her girlfriend standing there wearing a shirt that didn't even come close to covering her baby belly and was much too tight in the chest area. _

"_Not a single item of clothing from my regular wardrobe fits. Not even a shirt. I expected to grow out of my pants and some of my tops, but I didn't think nothing at all would fit with a couple months still to go. I'm not that big, am I?"_

_Arizona pulled her in close and removed the tight top. _

"_You're due in just over seven weeks," she told her. "Baby's supposed to grow."_

"_But it's not just my belly that's growing," she said. "It's everywhere."_

"_Not everywhere," she said. _

"_Have you seen my ass lately? And my boobs are out of control."_

"_That's a problem?" she smirked. _

"_I've always had curves. I even like my curves. I couldn't wait to start getting a baby bump, but now it's just to the point where it feels like I'm not even in my own body," she said, flopping down onto the bed and staring up at the ceiling. _

"_I'm sorry," Arizona said, lying down with her. "But for the record, you're gorgeous. You think you're bigger than you really are, I think. I mean, you're almost thirty-three weeks pregnant, but you're not abnormally big. You've gained what? Fifteen pounds so far?"_

"_Sixteen."_

"_Well, that one pound just puts you over the edge," she teased, giving her a kiss. "Stop worrying, embrace the elastic waists and loose tops, and enjoy these last however many weeks of having our little one all to yourself."_

"_You're telling me to stop worrying, yet you're in their reading an article about bonding? As if you and Baby won't be bonded the second he or she is born?"_

"_First of all, she," Arizona insisted. _

"_Stop saying that," Callie said. "I think it's a girl too, but what if we're wrong? Then we're calling our son 'she.'"_

"_Fine," she smiled. "And how do you know what I'm reading?"_

"_I saw it earlier."_

_She drew a deep breath. "I'm just being realistic. I'm not saying I won't love Baby. I will. Completely. I already do. I have ever since I saw the heartbeat that first time. And seeing its cute little face during your last ultrasound…I can't wait to kiss that little nose all day long. But you're already bonded with Baby because you get to feel everything. Every kick, every little hiccup…you already know each other so well, you and this kid. That's not an experience I've had, but I want that same Mommy-baby bond."_

"_And you'll have it," she said. _

"_That article's written by an adoptive mom. She said that she loved her son from the moment she met him, but that unbreakable bond wasn't instantaneous because they had to get to know each other first. He's eight months old now and she said that she absolutely feels like his mom in every way, though."_

"_See?" Callie replied. "You and Baby'll be buddies." _

"_Yep," she said. "I don't want you to think I'm worried about it. Really, I'm not. But I just wanted to know what to expect. I didn't want to feel horrible if getting to know Baby took some time. Now I know that that's okay and it doesn't make me a bad mommy."_

"_You're already a great mommy," she said, placing her girlfriend's hand on her stomach as their child kicked. "Baby says so."_

"_It's always active around this time, isn't it?"_

"_Yep," she nodded. "Usually."_

_Arizona smiled. _

"_See, you know something about Baby already."_

"_I guess I do," she nodded. _

"_And you know that it loves cake from that place all the way across the city that you make frequent trips to without even questioning it."_

"_I think the cake might be something Madre loves," she smiled. "Since Baby's gonna be on a breast milk diet for quite some time when it's finally born."_

"_Maybe," Callie laughed. "You might have a point there."_

"_I might," she winked. "But I do know that this is clearly gonna be the single most loved child alive."_

"_Yep," she said. "And I know that it'll have the best Mommy it could possibly have. I mean, you wear roller skates for shoes and you see no shame in that super pink scrub cap of yours."_

"_The pink makes me a good mom?"_

"_The pink makes you…playful and fun," she said. "And what kid doesn't love a mom who can be silly and fun and forget about maturity all in the name of having a blast?"_

"_I can see it now," Arizona smiled. "Dance parties with a toddler."_

"_Totally," Callie laughed. "So much fun."_

"_You need to hurry up and get here, Baby," Arizona told her unborn child. "Grow a little more so that you're nice and healthy and everything, but don't make us wait too much longer."_

"_Sounds good, Mama," Callie smiled._

* * *

Callie tried to think about what sensory stimulation might help to bring her fiancé back to her. She had already been holding her hand, stroking her arms, talking to her, and kissing her and so far all of those had yielded no results. There had to be something that would awaken her very own Sleeping Beauty.

Their child's movement made Callie wonder. She sat on the edge of Arizona's bed, careful to maintain her own balance, and placed the blond's hand high on her rounded belly.

"Feel that, Mommy?" she asked her. "Baby's using my ribs for soccer practice, I think."

"Anything?" Arizona's dad asked as they arrived for the day.

"Nope," Callie said, turning slightly to greet them, but not letting Arizona's hand leave her belly.

"What are you doing?" Barbara Robbins questioned.

"Some say that familiar things can help," Callie said. "And Baby's kicking, so I thought I'd see if I could get any kind of response."

"And nothing yet?" Colonel Robbins assumed.

"No," she said. "But I just started, so let's not get discouraged yet."

"I saw a baby name book on your shelf," Mrs. Robbins said, digging it out of her bag as she placed two coffees – one for her and one for Callie – down on a little table next to her daughter's fiancé. "I thought maybe we could go through it and see if you like any –"

Even though their focus was certainly Arizona's recovery, they also had a baby to prepare for. Plus, long days of sitting with someone who was unresponsive meant that they had to do something to busy themselves. They could only take so much idle waiting before they got too anxious.

Callie laughed. "Arizona would roll her eyes if she could," she said.

"She didn't want to pick the name?"

"She wanted to like the name," she clarified. "She just didn't want to go through lists and lists of names. It bored her, I think. To even think about going through so many lists with me being as picky as I was probably going to be…"

"I see."

"That smells so good," Callie said of the coffee. "Thanks."

"No problem," Barbara smiled. "It's the least we could do. You must be so uncomfortable on that couch all night."

"I am," she nodded. "But I know I wouldn't sleep a wink if I was at home."

The baby stopped kicking, so Callie took Arizona's hand off of her belly and placed it gently down at her side.

"I wish you could tell me what to do," she told her fiancé. "How to fix you. You probably know what I should do, but you can't tell me, right?"

Mark appeared in the doorway.

"Anything today?" he asked.

"No," Callie replied.

He sighed. "Keep me posted," he said. "I have a couple surgeries this morning, but if all goes according to plan, I should have some time to check back in later on."

"We really should go through the baby name book," Callie said. "I don't really want to pick any without her, but at the same time…"

"We might have to," he said, as gently as possible, knowing that it was the last thing Callie wanted. "Unless we want Baby to go without a name for…however long."

"Exactly," she said. "I think I want a name that will work in Spanish, too. Since I want to expose Baby to both languages. I know you and Arizona don't speak Spanish, but her and I had talked about it and she was on board, so…"

"I know nothing about Spanish or Spanish names."

"There's a whole section in the baby name book with a whole list, I think."

"Good," he said. "Maybe narrow it down to a couple you like and I'll take a look?"

"Sure."

"His last name's Torres, right?" Mark asked.

They hadn't even really talked about this, since it was a sensitive topic. However, it just seemed like the best way to go. With three parents, and three different last names, they would have to make a decision somehow. Torres seemed like the natural choice, considering that Callie was the one carrying the baby, and Arizona probably wouldn't object to the choice the way that she would if they gave their son or daughter Mark's last name.

"That works," Callie said. "But it's a girl. You said 'his.'"

"Because it's not a girl," he smiled. "Boy all the way."

"I think so too," Grandpa said.

"See?" Mark replied. "Boy."

"Well, Arizona and I think girl. And so does pretty much everyone else."

Out of the corner of Callie's eye, she saw Arizona's hand make the slightest movement. She simply raised two of her fingers, but this was the most movement she had made since the accident that had led to the coma.

"Did anybody else see that?" the Latina asked. "She moved, right?"

"Yep," Mark nodded as smiles spread across everyone's faces.

"She's waking up?" Mrs. Robbins questioned.

"Was that voluntary or…?" Callie asked Mark. "What do you think?"

"I'll get Derek," he said. "I have no idea, but it looked like it to me. Either that or it was just ironic timing."

"Please be voluntary," Callie said, as Mark went to go get Derek. "Do it again, Arizona," she told her. "Please? Baby's a girl, right?"

Nothing happened this time.

"You can do it, Arizona," her father encouraged.

"What happened?" Derek asked as he walked in with Mark right behind him.

"I swear she raised these two fingers," Callie said, moving out of the way so that Derek could examine Arizona.

She picked up her coffee and took a sip, trying to wait as patiently as possible for Derek to say something.

"Arizona, can you raise your fingers again for us?" he asked her.

He got no response.

"We were talking about the baby," Mark said. "Even from a coma, she's trying to tell me I'm wrong."

"Still think it's a boy?" Callie asked.

"I'm starting to have my doubts," he admitted.

"What do you think?" Colonel Robbins asked Derek.

"I'd like to run some more tests," he answered. "I really don't know what to think. It could be a sign of progress, but it may also be a fluke."

"We just have to hope it's a good sign," Callie said. "Keep hoping. Not that we've stopped, but if ever there was a time to pray, it would be right about now."


	4. Perfection At Once

Three weeks later, Teddy walked quietly into her friend's room. It was the middle of the night, and she didn't want to disturb Callie as she checked on Arizona.

"Hi," the Ortho surgeon said, since she was awake anyway.

"I thought you'd be asleep," she told her.

"I can't get comfortable," she said.

"Callie, why don't you go home and sleep in your own bed? I'm sure Arizona's parents would come sleep here. Or you could ask anybody here and I'm sure they would. Me, Bailey, Sloan, Karev…so many people would be willing to -"

"When Henry's here, where are you?"

"Here," she answered. "But I'm also working."

"Still."

"Fine."

"I just don't think I could sleep without her," Callie explained. "It's not like she's working all night or something. She's in a coma. She needs me here. Plus, her most responsive period is from about six in the morning, to four in the afternoon. I want to be able to take full advantage of it," she said, shifting her weight a little as she tried to get more comfortable.

Arizona may not have woken up yet, but she was showing more and more promising signs. She was still raising her fingers – and even her whole hand some days - in response to conversation in the room. She was also starting to squeeze people's hands if they held hers. Derek couldn't tell them whether or not she would make a full recovery, but he was very reassured by her improved condition.

"What about getting ready for the baby?"

"Arizona's parents have been amazing," Callie told her. "They finished up all the little things we hadn't gotten around to in the nursery. Mark's taken care of pretty much everything else. We're ready. Physically," she said, placing her hand on her belly.

"But you're not really ready," Teddy said.

"No," she replied. "I'm not. I can't do this without her."

"And I hope you don't have to," Teddy said. "I hope Arizona's at least awake by the time you go into labour. She might not be able to be the biggest help, but I hope she's at least aware and awake."

"Yeah."

"But if she's not, you don't have to do it alone," she told her. "I mean, Sloan'll be there, and I'm sure anybody else you asked would be more than willing to be there as long as they weren't in the OR or something."

"Really?"

"Really," she said. "I would. If you wanted me there, obviously."

"Thanks," she smiled.

"No problem."

Teddy spent a few minutes with Arizona, but left sooner than she originally planned since Callie was awake.

"I guess we should pick a couple names, huh?" Callie asked, getting up, turning on the lights and closing the door.

She had been looking through the baby name book every day, but none of the names she had come across had really made an impression on her just yet.

She knew it was doubtful that Arizona would be responsive in the middle of the night, but she brought the book over and sat with her anyway, figuring her fiancé should at least hear any potential names she was going to consider.

Tears began to roll down Callie's cheeks; this time she didn't even bother to compose herself. The intermittent ache that she had been experiencing for the last few hours had just returned like clockwork, and she wanted Arizona to understand that she needed her now.

"I'm pretty sure today's gonna be Baby's birthday," she admitted for the first time aloud. "I've been having contractions since just after midnight. They're not close together or anything, but they're consistent and my back hurts a little more than usual. I'm thirty-seven and a half weeks now. It's July eighth. There's no reason to think this isn't the real thing. No reason except for the fact that I don't think I can have this baby without you, and you're not awake. I know that even if you woke up right now, you wouldn't be able to go up to Labour and Delivery with me. I know that. There's no way you'd be in decent enough shape to handle that. But I want you to be awake. I want to know that you know what's going on, that you're thinking about me while our child is coming into the world. I need you to be awake to meet our baby, Arizona. So, please. If there's any way you can make that happen, do it. I'm sure it's peaceful or whatever it is in there, but wake up for me. Wake up for our baby, Mommy."

Eventually, Callie pulled it together and opened the baby name book up. If today was really going to be the day, they needed to have a few names picked out.

"Do you like Matias?" she asked. "I know we're sure it's a girl, but if we have a boy and don't even have a clue what to call him, that'll just make me feel bad. Matias is nice, right? We could call him Matt. I told Mark that if it's a boy, its middle name is gonna be Timothy. He's cool with it, because he knows it's important to you. Which makes it important to me, too. So, it would be Matias Timothy Torres. You like it? I like it. I think it's a contender."

* * *

"So, you squeezed my hand when I said Paloma, but you squeezed it again when I said Sofia?" Callie asked a few hours later. "Which one is it? We're only having one kid."

She had taken a break from the baby names and had gotten a few hours of rest before the alarm she had set told her it was time to get up because Arizona's most responsive period of the day had begun once again.

"Maybe she just likes both," Alex said, coming into the room with a few more pieces of "get well" artwork for his mentor that the kids in the Peds. ward had made. Of course, most of them didn't know how severe Dr. Robbins' injuries were; they just wanted to make her pretty things in order to help lift her spirits.

Callie sat up a little straighter and hoped that the next few pains that she would have wouldn't be noticeable. They were slowly getting stronger and they were now coming every eight minutes, but she had yet to tell anyone but Arizona. She didn't want to have to leave her fiancé's side yet.

"Maybe," Callie said.

Alex put the three cards on Arizona's bedside table, next to Baby's ultrasound picture.

"Your replacement sucks," he told his teacher. "She's treating me like I'm an intern. Asking me questions and then answering them before I can even open my mouth."

"Don't tell her about her replacement," Callie told him.

"It's temporary," he said. "I'm giving her one more reason to wake up. Because now I've got Stark, or I've got this chick who thinks that I'm useless."

"Well, good luck with that," Callie replied.

"And the new interns start on Monday."

"Have fun with that."

"At this point, I'm gonna stick as many of them as I can with the new chick in hopes that they drive her off."

Callie laughed just as a contraction was starting, and Alex noticed her expression change.

"You okay?"

"Fine," she said. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"How far along are you?"

"Thirty-seven and a half weeks," she said, as she began talking faster than usual. "It's Braxton-Hicks. I know it is. It has to be. I mean, this is my first baby. Statistically, most first babies are born later rather than sooner. My body hasn't done this before, so –"

"You're in labour, aren't you?"

"No."

"Then why did you get all defensive?" he asked. "Rattling off statistics that are supposed to what? Convince me that first babies are never born at thirty-seven weeks?"

"I'm not in labour."

"How far apart are these 'Braxton-Hicks?'"

He probably would have believed her if she hadn't been so quick to provide him with a reasoning for her pain. That was the part that made him suspicious, not the pain itself.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"Fine," he said. "I can just page Dr. Sloan."

"They're eight minutes apart," she said. "Please don't tell Mark."

"Torres, you're in labour."

"And at this point, it would be too early to admit me anyways," she said. "But if Mark finds out, he's gonna get me up to Labour and Delivery and…"

"Somebody can stay with Robbins. Don't her parents usually come in a little bit, anyway?"

"_I_ want to stay with her," she insisted. "I didn't picture this happening like this. I pictured _her_ holding _my_ hand and sitting by_ my_ hospital bed."

"I know."

"But this is what's happening and she needs to be a part of this. She's at least somewhat aware of her surroundings and she deserves to be a part of this. As much as possible. So I'm staying here."

"You're gonna have your kid in ICU?"

"Mark'll force me up to L&D at some point," she said. "But I'm not gonna be volunteering to go. Our baby's being born and I can't have Arizona there. I need to stay here as long as I can, though. I can't spend the whole day up there. I just can't. It might sound crazy to you, Karev, but this the only way I'm gonna be able to get through any of this. I know Baby's okay because it's kicking, so I'm not worried about needing to be monitored just yet."

"Fine."

"You won't tell Mark?"

"No."

"Thank you."

"If Sloan gets pissed off –"

"I won't let him make your life hell," she told him. "Just go, Karev."

"You need anything?"

"Just Arizona."

* * *

"I like Francisco better than Matias," Mark said, about an hour and a half later as he, Callie, and Arizona's parents sat in the room trying to finalize what they were going to be calling Baby. "Matias Timothy Torres is too 'T' heavy."

"But people would call a Francisco 'Fran'," Callie replied. "I'm not crazy about that."

"I went to high school with a Fran," Mrs. Robbins told them. "Who was a girl."

"Exactly."

"People could call him 'Cisco'," Mark pointed out.

Arizona's reached her hand up toward him, as if to say that she liked his suggestion.

"You like Francisco better than Matias?" Callie asked her. "Squeeze my hand if you think we should go with Francisco."

She squeezed.

"Cisco it is," she said. "I do like that better than Fran, so yeah. It works."

"Are you sure?" Mark asked her. "I don't want you to hate it."

"I don't. I think Cisco's a cool nickname."

"Okay."

"One down, one to go," Grandpa commented.

Mark noticed Callie wince in pain for the fourth time since he had been in Arizona's room. He didn't think much of it the first time he saw it, but as it happened more and more, he started to think that maybe something was going on.

"You okay?" he asked.

"She seemed to like Paloma and Sofia for girls," Callie said, ignoring his question. "She squeezed my hand when I mentioned both of them earlier."

"Sofia's Spanish?"

"The S-O-F-I-A spelling is the Spanish one," she said. "It's used in other languages too, but one of them is Spanish."

"Oh," he said. "And about that contraction you just had…?"

"Mark…"

"Every five minutes, huh?"

"You've been having contractions?" Mrs. Robbins asked.

"And you didn't say anything?" her husband added.

"I'm fine," she said. "Arizona, which one do you like best? Sofia or Paloma? Squeeze once if you wanna name Baby Sofia and twice for Paloma."

One squeeze.

"I like Sofia best, too," Daddy agreed, with a smile. "But your fiancé's being difficult, Robbins."

"I'm okay."

"You're in labour."

"What middle name would we use with Sofia?" she asked.

"Stop changing the subject."

"Well, if I am having the baby, we have to name it," she told him, not completely admitting anything.

"Robbin Sloan," he said. "I was thinking about that last night."

"I love it. So, Cisco Timothy or Sofia Robbin Sloan? For sure?"

"Yep," he nodded.

"If you're worried about leaving Arizona, don't be," her mom said. "Daniel and I'll stay here. She'll be fine."

"I know that, but…never mind," she told them. "I'm fine."

"Sure," Mark replied.

* * *

By ten o'clock, Callie's knuckles were white as she gripped the railing on Arizona's bed, trying her best not to make any noise as another contraction took over her body. She couldn't help but let a little moan escape her lips at the peak of the pain.

Nobody had said anything about Callie being in labour since a few hours earlier when she kept refusing to talk about it, but there was clearly no turning back now. Without even talking about it, everyone in the room simply went to work trying to keep her as comfortable as possible until she would finally agree to leave Arizona's side.

She stood up when that pain ended.

"Move the chair," she told Mark. "I don't want to sit anymore."

"Okay," he said, taking it out of the way. "What do you want?"

"I don't know," she breathed.

"Are you having a contraction now?" her future mother-in-law wondered.

"No," she said.

"Then try to breathe normally," she said, handing her a water bottle.

"I am," she said as she took a sip.

"Good."

"Maybe you should go upstairs now?" Arizona's dad suggested, even though he tried not to.

Callie looked down at Arizona. "You need to wake up," she said. "I'm not giving you a choice. I've waited almost a month, and…fine. I can wait. Your parents can wait. But your baby can't wait. Your baby's gonna need Mommy right away, Arizona. I don't want you to wake up when this kid's a few weeks old. I want you to wake right now. Today. Tomorrow. Really, really soon."

"Callie, are you trying to wake for her to wake up?" Mark asked, softly rubbing her shoulder. "Because we all want it to be today, but Baby just might not wait."

"I don't know what I'm waiting for anymore!" she cried. "I just…I don't want to do this like this!"

"I know," he said. "I know you don't, and believe me, if any of us could wake her up, we would. But she'd want you do focus on Baby right now, Torres."

"Believe me, the contractions are making me focus on Baby!"

"Callie, I'm worried that if we don't go up now, you'll start pushing soon, and we won't be able to get you up there at all."

Before Callie could form a response, she dropped into a squat-like position, let the water bottle fall, and muttered something in Spanish, before realizing that nobody in the room could act on her request if they had no clue what she was asking of them.

"What?" Mark asked.

"My hips," she said, as he got down to her level.

She let out another moan – this one considerably louder – as he put a hand on either side of her and sort of squeezed her hips together. He didn't know if this was what she was wanting, but he remembered Addison once telling him that it sometimes helped labouring women cope with their pain. He couldn't remember how, but he didn't care, either. It was worth a try as long as it worked for Callie.

It seemed to help, even though Callie couldn't confirm this assumption.

"How do women do this?" she asked when the contraction ended.

"Wanna get up?" he asked, ready to help her straighten her body back out.

She shook her head. This squatted stance felt best.

"I'll be back," Mark said, before leaving the room.

"Where the hell does he think he's going?" Callie asked Arizona's parents.

Mark knew exactly where he was headed and it turned out that he didn't even have to head very far.

"Dr. Bailey, you're good at talking sense into people," he smiled, when he saw her walking up to the nurse's station.

"What do you want, Sloan?" she asked, handing Teddy the chart of a patient that turned out to have more cardio related injuries than he had general-based ones.

"Callie's in labour," he said. "From the looks of it, very, very active labour. It's been a long, long time since I've been around a labouring woman, but I'd say she's about to hit transition."

"So, what are you doing talking to me?" she asked.

"She won't leave Robbins' room."

"Seriously?" Teddy asked. "They have the drugs upstairs."

"Seriously," he said.

The three of them walked back into Arizona's room and Bailey got down beside her.

"Torres, look at me," she said.

Callie turned her head and their eyes met.

"I know you're scared," she said. "I know. And I know you want Arizona to be a part of this. I'm so, so sorry that this is going nothing like you thought it would."

"Why can't this baby just wait?" Callie asked.

"It doesn't work that way," she said. "Tuck was born when his dad was on Shepherd's table in the middle of a bomb scare. Babies don't know these things, Callie. All your baby knows is that it's ready to meet you. That…that is not a bad thing. Arizona would be so excited and she'd want you to be just as excited. And you've been with her this whole time. I'm sure she knows that."

Callie finally gave in, too exhausted to resist any longer. She knew that she had to leave her fiancé's side, and that that was okay now. This labour wasn't going anything like she had wanted, but Bailey was right.

"Fine."

"And you can come back down here soon," Teddy said. "You won't necessarily have to stay up there as long as everything's okay. Exceptions can be made."

"You must think I'm a crazy person right now," Callie replied, about a minute later, since she had to stop and focus through another pain. "Wanting to stay here so Arizona can be a part of it."

"Labouring women aren't rational under the best of circumstances," Bailey told her. "Let alone when they're going through it all without the person they love supporting them."

"Can you guys be there?" she asked them.

"Sure," Teddy nodded.

"Of course," Bailey smiled. "Now, let's go meet your baby."

Mark helped his best friend to her feet.

"Almost done," he told her.

"Don't let Fields keep me up there," she told him. "And even if she does, I want you to bring Baby down here."

"Okay," he nodded.

"We'll be with her," Mrs. Robbins said. "Don't worry about her."

Callie leaned down to give Arizona a kiss. "I love you."

"She's gonna be okay," Mark said. "And we'll get her back to you soon. And Baby, too."

He had spoken these words many times over the last few weeks, but Callie knew that this time he was talking to Arizona. He couldn't fill her shoes in the slightest, and he wasn't even trying to, but he was going to make sure that Callie felt as supported as possible.

"If you want, we can get a video camera and record the birth," Teddy suggested. "That way, Arizona can at least see it later. Typically, I'd say that's weird. There is no way I'd want to record a person coming out of my vagina, but I think it's a great idea in this case."

"Good idea," Callie nodded. "Yeah."

* * *

Callie had one more contraction in the elevator, which caused her to drop down to her knees this time. It took longer than they had thought it would to get her to a room because of this, but they made it. Teddy went to find a video camera and returned just as Lucy was coming into the room.

"Let's get you into a gown and then I'll check you."

"That's not gonna happen," Callie breathed, trying to get the words out before her next pain arrived.

"What the hell took you guys so long to get her up here?" Lucy asked, putting a pair of gloves on. "She practically lives two floors down!"

"Drop it," Mark said as Bailey helped Callie get her pants off. "She couldn't come up earlier, okay?"

Callie looked over at him as she grabbed his hand and he saw a hint of fear in her eyes.

"You're okay," he told her. "Torres, you're doing it."

"I have to push," she told him.

"Not quite yet," Lucy replied, shaking her head as she examined Callie. "You've got a tiny lip of cervix left."

Callie yelled something out in Spanish and everyone in the room knew just what this utterance meant, even though they didn't speak the language.

"Your water just needs to break now," her doctor told her. "That should do the trick."

"Fields, she's already pushing," Mark said, as Lucy went ahead and broke Callie's water.

Callie's cervix may not have been officially ready, but he knew that the rest of her was. He could tell just by looking at her that her body was pushing their baby out.

"I'm trying not to," Callie told him. "I can't help it!"

"We know," Bailey nodded. "If you can breathe through them, breathe. If you can't, just go with your body."

"I'm scared."

"Baby'll be here in a few minutes, Torres. Minutes," Mark replied.

"You don't know that!"

"I can tell."

"I want Arizona," she said, breathing rapidly.

"Of course you do," Teddy nodded. "We know."

"But meeting your baby's still gonna be amazing," Bailey promised.

"Slow down your breathing," Mark told her. "A few more minutes of work and you'll be somebody's madre. Officially."

"I can't do this," she said, after another push. "I can't push a kid out of my vagina, Mark!"

"Callie, you're a few pushes away from doing just that," Bailey pointed out.

Callie's screams only intensified as the power with which she bore down did the same. Mark was right; just few minutes later, the crown of the baby's head was being delivered.

"Good," he said, as she gripped his arm. "You want to look in the mirror?"

"I want to keep pushing!" she exclaimed, as she did just that.

"Slowly, Callie," Lucy said. "You don't want to rush the head out."

"Help me!"

"You're okay," Mark said. "Just push gently. You're doing perfectly."

"It hurts," she replied when the contraction ended.

"Yep," Bailey nodded. "It does. But that feeling when your baby is finally in your arms is so, so worth all of it."

"A few more minutes," Mark said again. "And Baby'll be here. Then we can go downstairs and introduce him or her to Mommy, Grandma, and Grandpa."

Callie's next three pushes worked the baby's head out. "Ow!" she yelled as she felt it turning. "What the -?"

"Baby's just turning," Lucy said. "That way the shoulders'll come out easier."

One last push brought Baby Torres into the world at ten twenty-four that morning. Lucy put him or her onto Madre's chest right away.

"Hi!" Callie sobbed. "Hi! You're so perfect!" She looked up at her friends. "This is so perfect!"

"Yep!" Mark smiled, rubbing the vernix covered back of his new baby, whom nobody could ever deny looked just like Callie, as the little one started to cry.

"Is it a girl?" she asked.

"Welcome to the world, Sofia Robbin Sloan," he smiled, as he checked.

Callie's lips met her girl's dark hair. "I love you so much! You're so pretty!"

"Say 'I'm the prettiest baby girl ever!'" Mark told Sofia.

Her cry got louder and everyone laughed. "Are you tryin' to talk?" Bailey smiled.

"I think so," Teddy decided.

"We're so glad to have you here," Callie said. "Did you know that?"

"So much love and you haven't even met Mommy or Grandma or Grandpa," Mark told her.

"Or Abuelo," Callie added. "You'll meet him one day, too."

Callie's mother had chosen not to be a part of her life anymore, but her father still called her almost every day. He hadn't been to visit in awhile, but he was still planning to be as involved as possible in the baby's life.

"It'll be so fun to meet everybody, won't it?" Daddy asked, as Lucy handed him a pair of scissors with which he cut Sofia's umbilical cord.

"We'll start with Mama, 'kay?" Callie said.

* * *

About an hour after Sofia's arrival, Callie placed her little lady down on her Mommy's chest.

"I want you to meet Sofia Robbin Sloan Torres," she smiled. "This is your daughter, Mama. She's eight pounds, two ounces, eighteen inches long. She was born at ten twenty-four. You should see her," she said, as she sat down in the chair that Mark gave her. "She's absolutely perfect. Oh, and we recorded the birth. I'm screaming like a ridiculous fool, but at least you'll get to watch our daughter be born."

"She looks just like Callie, Robbins," Mark said. "Lots of dark, dark hair, big brown eyes…"

"This is Mommy, Sofia," Callie told the newborn. "She loves you so much, but she's just sleepin' right now. We hope she wakes up soon, don't we?"

"She's beautiful," Grandma smiled. "And a nice size for a thirty-seven weeker, huh?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

"I'm surprised you're back down here so soon," Grandpa said.

"I held her, Mark held her, she got cleaned and weighed, I nursed her, and then I insisted I come back down. My doctor was a little hesitant because she said I needed rest, but I can rest up here."

"And you got in a gown, too," Mark said.

"Yeah."

"What?" Mrs. Robbins questioned.

"I had her before I even got a gown on. There wasn't even time for fetal monitoring or anything. I mean, I knew she was okay because I could feel her moving and stuff, but it was quick," Callie said.

"How are you feeling?" Arizona's dad asked.

"Obviously sore," she answered. "But pretty good, actually. It's amazing."

Arizona raised her hand and Callie helped her to bring it around Sofia's little body.

"Mommy wants to cuddle, Sofia," she told her.

"Unwrap the blanket," Mark suggested. "It's warm enough in here. Let her feel her skin."

"Good idea," Callie smiled. She started to unwrap the baby's blanket and Sofia started crying. "Oh, it's okay! We'll put a blanket on you and Mama, okay?"

Grandma Robbins handed Callie a blanket when Sofia's was off. Callie carefully placed the new one over top of both of her girls, making sure that it didn't cover Sofia's face at all.

"There we go," Madre said.

Still, Sofia was crying.

"What's the matter?" Mark asked. "You have a full belly and a clean diaper and you seem comfortable."

It was then that it happened. Arizona made a soft sound that made everyone other than Sofia stop in their tracks. Arizona had been silently sleeping for the last twenty-four days. She hadn't made any noise whatsoever.

"Arizona?" Callie asked. "What is it?"

Mark went around to the other side of Arizona's bed, reached under the blanket, and took hold of the hand that wasn't wrapped around Sofia.

"Are you in pain?" he asked her.

Even if she was, responding to the pain was still a good sign in terms of her awareness.

"Squeeze once for yes, twice for no," her mom reminded her.

"Twice," Mark said, as he felt two squeezes.

"Are you too warm?" her dad wondered.

"Twice," Mark repeated when the same thing happened again.

"What else could -?" her mom started to ask herself aloud.

"Are you waking up?" Callie asked. "Can you wake up? Arizona, are you trying to wake up?"

The wait felt like the longest wait of their lives, even though it was less than a minute.

"Mark, what did she say?"

"Once," he smiled.


	5. The Best Birthday Ever

Arizona's eyes fluttered open and a look of great confusion swept over her face. She didn't seem to have any idea what was going on.

"Arizona?" Callie asked, as she burst into tears.

"What…?" she choked out.

"We were in a car accident," Callie said, as Sofia started to settle down all on her own. "Three and a half weeks ago."

She gave Arizona a few seconds to process this, not wanting to overwhelm her with too much information at once.

"Weeks?" she asked.

"Yeah," she nodded. "But you're gonna be okay, alright?"

"Okay," she smiled.

"And we have a baby girl," she added, not sure if Arizona was aware of the newborn's presence on her chest, given everything else she was taking in.

"Sorry," she said, her face changing to display an expression of sadness now.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," she said, giving her a kiss. "She was just born an hour ago. You missed her birth, but you're here for the best parts. And I wasn't alone. Mark, Teddy, and Bailey were with me."

"Good," she replied.

She looked down at her baby girl and inhaled her sweet scent.

"She smells amazing, doesn't she?" Mark smiled.

"Baby smell," Arizona answered, smiling again because she just wasn't able to stay sad while she looked down at this new love on her chest. "Hi, Baby."

"Mama woke up, Sofia!" Grandma said.

"Just for you," Grandpa added. "You started crying and she woke up."

"Yep!" Callie smiled. "You have no idea how great it feels to see your eyes open right now," she told the love of her life. "And to hear your voice. Finally."

"I love you," she said.

"I love you, too," she told her, kissing her again. "Thank you so much for waking up."

"What's…her name?" she asked.

"Sofia Robbin Sloan," Callie announced. "Torres."

"Pretty."

"You helped pick it, Mom," Mark told her.

"I did?"

"Yep," Callie explained. "You would squeeze our hands to let us know what you wanted to say."

"I don't remember."

"That's okay," she said. "All that matters is that you came back to us. And you're a great mom, and the best fiancé."

"Fiancé?"

"Just before the accident, you proposed," she said. "I didn't get a chance to say yes, but yes," she smiled. "Definitely yes."

"I don't remember."

"It's okay," Callie said.

"But we're getting married," she smiled.

"We are."

"And we're mommies."

"We are."

"When can I…?"

"When can you what?" Callie asked.

"Home?"

"Go home?" she smiled. "Oh, not for awhile. You still have plenty of healing to do. But that's okay."

Arizona may have woken up, but that didn't mean that she was healed. It simply meant that this was the beginning of a longer process that would hopefully restore her back to the woman she once was. She would have to go through plenty of physio and occupational therapies in order to retrain her muscles, since she had been injured and then she hadn't used them in weeks. Being in the coma had weakened her considerably. Some of her treatment could be done as an outpatient, but she wasn't quite ready to be discharged yet.

"I just wanna…go home with…my girls."

"We'll be here," she said. "You worry about you, okay?"

"Yeah."

"Promise?"

"Fine."

"Hey, I hear congratulations are in order," Derek smiled when Mark came and found him sitting in the Attending lounge eating lunch.

"Thanks," he smiled. "It's a really, really, really, really great day. Arizona's up."

"Arizona's what is up?" he asked, thinking he was talking about her vital signs or something, since he was used to patiently waiting for the Peds. surgeon to awaken.

"She woke up," he smiled.

"She did?"

"Callie put the baby on her chest and, as soon as she started crying, Arizona woke up," Mark said. "Like it was nothing."

"I'll come do a neuro exam," he said, getting up and throwing the rest of his lunch away.

"She doesn't remember the crash or what happened while she was in the coma," Mark told him as they walked to her room. "That's normal, right?"

"Yes."

"Good."

"And she obviously had no idea how much time had passed."

"Well, no."

"But she seemed…like Arizona," he said. "She was talking, she recognizes us…all of that good stuff."

"Good."

Callie was still sitting by Arizona's bedside, just watching her watch Sofia, as Derek and Mark walked into the room.

"Are you okay?" the blond was asking her fiancé.

"Am _I _okay?" she laughed. "I couldn't be better."

"You really had…a baby an hour…ago?"

"I did," she nodded, the smile still stuck on her face. "But we wanted to get back down here to you."

Derek smiled. "I hate to break up this little family moment, but can I do an exam?"

"Later," Arizona smiled, glancing back down at Sofia.

"No," Callie replied, already putting her firm "mom voice" into practice. "How about now? You've been unconscious for twenty-four days. Just because you woke up doesn't mean that you're magically healed."

"But –"

"I'll take this little princess," Callie said, standing up to take Sofia off of Arizona's chest. "Right? Are you a little princess?" She kissed her nose. "Mommy woke up because you came to see her! You're so special!"

"Make it quick," Arizona told Derek.

"How about I make it a complete exam followed by an MRI because that's what's necessary?" Derek said. "I know you just wanna be Mommy, but right now, you're the patient."

"Sofia needs me," she said. "And Calliope…"

"It won't take long," she told her. "We'll be here."

"Sofia's a pretty name," Derek smiled, as Arizona's eyes followed his light. "Do you know what it means? Wisdom."

"Dude," Mark laughed. "How the hell do you know that?"

"Tiny ears," Arizona said.

"Oh, she's an hour old," he smiled. "She's got a lot more to figure out then what I just said. But seriously. You know what her name means?"

"I have lots and lots of sisters who have lots and lots of children," Derek said. "For awhile there, it felt like somebody was always pregnant and baby names were the topic at every family thing. I'm the only guy. And…" he said, looking back and forth between Callie, Sofia, Arizona and Mark. "In this little arrangement, so are you," he laughed. "So get used to talking about very, very girly things for a very, very long time."

"Dress-up, tea parties, princesses…" Arizona's dad agreed.

"Good," Mark said. "Somehow I can't wait to humiliate myself for her enjoyment."

"Anyways, my point is that the wise thing to do would be the MRI," Derek told Arizona. "Squeeze my hand."

"Please," she smiled, as she did it. "I could do that from my coma. And fine, if you insist, I'll have the MRI. But that comment was…pretty cheesy."

He laughed. "Move your toes, please?" he requested next.

"I'm not paralysed."

"Toes," Callie said. "I know you feel great, but let's do what the world class neurosurgeon who saved your life says, please."

As predicted, Arizona had full sensation in both legs.

"See?" she smiled.

"I'll go see how soon I can get you that scan," Derek told her. "I don't think they're too busy down there, but…"

"If you must," Arizona agreed. "And thanks. For…the whole…life saving thing."

"It wasn't just me, but you're welcome," he smiled. "Welcome back. And congratulations."

"Thanks."

With that, Derek left the room.

"I was in a coma for twenty-four days?" she asked. "Really?"

"Really," her mom nodded.

"And don't feel bad about leaving when you go down for the MRI," Callie said. "Because I'm over the moon that you're back, but I also just had your baby. I could use some food and a pretty long nap."

She smiled. "Okay. Bring me my baby."

Callie brought Sofia back over and placed her down on Mommy's chest once again. "Here," she said, giving her a kiss.

"She's like a mini-Calliope," Arizona said. "Completely."

"I missed being called that," Callie told her. "My dad calls me it, but I missed you calling me it."

"Calliope, Calliope, Calliope, Calliope, Calliope, Calliope, Calliope, Calliope, Calliope," she smiled. "Better?"

"Much."

"You look far too good for someone who just…just had a baby," Arizona told her.

"Well, you can still lie to make me feel good about myself," Callie replied. "We know that much."

"It's true."

* * *

"Can you believe everything that's happened today?" Callie asked.

This was, hands down, the happiest day of her life and it showed. The joy that had been missing from her life for the past twenty-four days was back now and she was more joyful than she had probably ever been before. She was finally a mom to a precious baby girl, and she would have Arizona by her side as they got to know Sofia. What more could she possibly ask for? Right now, she was pretty content.

"Nope!" Grandma Robbins said, holding Sofia in one arm as she ate with the other.

Arizona was getting her MRI done and Mark had gone to get Sofia, Callie, and Arizona a few things that they needed from home, so Grandma was taking full advantage of the time that she had to cuddle Sofia before the opportunities to get to know the little bundle in her arms had to be split between even more people again.

"I know I'm biased, but is she not the best baby ever?" the new mom asked, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"Of course she is!"

Her husband laughed. "You said that about both of our kids. How many best babies ever can there be?"

"Three," she answered. "But grandbabies…grandbabies are just a _little_ bit sweeter than any other babies."

Callie smiled. "I think somebody's gonna be spoiled."

"Yes, you are!" Barbara told her granddaughter. "We've waited a long, long, long time for you."

"I'm sure there was a time when Grandma and Grandpa thought you'd never even come, Sofia," Callie said. "And here you are!"

"I always knew," she said, as Sofia's eyes opened up about halfway. "I knew Mommy'd be a mommy one day wayyyyy before she even did."

"I'm so glad your mommy's your mommy, Sof," Callie said. "And she's awake! You told her to wake up and she did."

The newborn started fussing. "Oh, what?" Grandma asked. "What would you like?"

"Could she be hungry again?" Callie asked.

"Maybe," she replied. "She's gonna nurse a lot right now because she's trying to get your milk to come in."

"Yeah," Callie said, putting her lunch down and getting up to go take her daughter from Grandma. "Is it Sofia's lunch time?" she asked. "You hardly even look awake, Baby! You're cryin', but your eyes aren't even all the way open!"

"How long should Arizona be gone?" Daniel asked.

"Not too much longer," Callie answered as Sofia began to nurse. "Right, Baby Girl? Mama'll be back soon, and so will Daddy. He's bringin' us stuff and he'll come see you for a little bit. Then, I think you, me and Mama need a nap."

"Is there anything we can go do for you?" Barbara asked. "Obviously, we want to be here as much as possible now that Arizona's awake and Miss Sofia's here, but you're right. You need to rest, so we can come back a little later. Once we know things are okay with Arizona, of course."

"Um, I don't know," Callie said, trying to think.

Her life had become almost all about sitting by her fiancé's bedside. Luckily, the Robbins, Mark, and her other friends had helped her to take care of all of her other responsibilities. Yet, now she was finding it hard to remember what "normal" things had to be done.

"Maybe grocery shopping?" Callie asked. "Not that I wanna head home right away and leave Arizona here, but let's be honest. This really isn't a great place for a baby to spend her first few weeks. At some point, I'll have to head home. Clearly, we'll visit a ton, but…"

"Yeah."

"I don't want to come home to a house with no food," she said. "And I don't think I'm brave enough to shop with a newborn just yet."

"You'll figure it out," her future father-in-law told her.

"Oh, I'm sure."

"I can cook a whole bunch of meals and freeze them for you," Barbara offered. "That way, you can just heat them up. No cooking, little cleanup. Not that we're going anywhere just yet, but for after we do, I mean."

"That would be great."

* * *

Arizona's test results revealed just what Derek expected. She was still recovering, but there seemed to be no major concerns, meaning that she would probably be able to do everything she could before the accident after she received the right therapies.

The new moms both lay in Arizona's bed shortly after she returned to her room, not intending to fall asleep while they still had company, but just needing to be close to each other. However, they both fell asleep within twenty minutes.

"Good," Mark, who had since returned, told Sofia. "Your madre needs a good sleep. She's been so worried about Mommy that she's been awake a lot. I'm sure the nap is doing Mommy some good, too.

"Probably," Grandpa nodded.

Sofia started crying and Daddy quickly realized that she had just wet her diaper. "Shh…" he said. "Don't wake up your moms, Silly. This might take Daddy awhile. I haven't changed a diaper in a bit."

"You're a surgeon and diaper changes scare you?" Grandpa laughed.

The Robbins had never been Mark's biggest fans and they probably would never feel much love for their daughter's dad; after all, they had seen Arizona struggle because of Mark's presence in the situation. However, they had also seen a different side of Mark Sloan since they had been in Seattle this past month. They no longer thought he was as bad as they once imagined him to be, and they knew that there was not much point in trying to hate him. That wouldn't do anybody any good.

"Oh, it's different," Barbara smiled. "Sofia's so tiny."

"I know she's not breakable, but she _feels_ breakable," Mark smiled, as he laid her down to take her diaper off.

Callie stirred. "Does she need to nurse?"

"Nope," Mark said. "I've got it."

"Thanks."

"After this, we'll head out," Barbara said. "She's been pretty sleepy, so she can just sleep with you. Unless you want…"

"I don't want to kick anybody out, but some alone time would be nice."

"Okay," Mark smiled, as he wiped Sofia. "I went and stole one of those baby bed things from upstairs, so…"

"Thanks," she replied. "If you wanna stay, you –"

"I do," he said. "But you and Robbins need some time. I'll be around if you need anything and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't gonna pop back in here for a baby fix at some point, but she's still gonna be the same in a couple hours. I'll just go brag about her to whoever's willing to listen."

She laughed. "Thanks, Mark."

"No problem."

Sofia was still crying as Daddy continued working on the diaper change.

"You've gotta get faster at that," Arizona said as she woke up.

"I know," he smiled. "I know."

"It's so nice to see you wake up," Callie said.

"You're gonna be waking me up just to make sure I _can_ wake up, aren't you?" the blond asked.

"I'll try really hard not to," she smiled. "But I make no promises."

"What time is it?"

"Two thirty," her dad said.

"Sofia, you're already four hours old," Callie said. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Say 'stop talkin' about me bein' old,'" Mommy smiled. "You're plenty little, huh?"

"She is."

"What day is today, anyway?" Arizona said, not sure she knew.

"July eighth."

"It's a very happy birthday," Mommy smiled. "The best birthday ever."

"And Mommy doesn't even like birthdays, Sof."

"I don't like _my_ birthday," she clarified. "I love Sofia's birthday."

"I think this one might be hard to top in the years to come," Mark said.

"Yep."

* * *

**A/N: I have distinct plans for the next few chapters, but I was wondering if there was anything you guys think should happen in this story as/after Arizona heals. Let me know. Please don't be offended if I don't use your suggestion, but I will certainly consider ones that I think could work with my vision for this story. Thanks again for reading and for leaving all of the reviews. :)**


	6. Learning Curves

**I'm sorry that this chapter took me longer to get up than I thought it would. I thought I was going to be able to work on it yesterday, but I barely got a chance. I'm hoping the next one will be up sooner, since I think it's a pretty good one. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy Chapter 6. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

"I'm getting better at this, huh?" Mark asked as he changed Sofia's diaper on Monday morning.

Sofia had kept Callie up for most of the night the night before, so Mark was trying to give her a chance to eat breakfast in peace before the baby needed her again. Luckily, Arizona had been mostly undisturbed by the three-day-olds's constant demands for more of Madre's milk or fresh diapers; Mommy was still fast asleep.

"Just wait until she's old enough to squirm away as we try and change her," Callie said. "We'll see how good you are at it then."

"By then Daddy'll be a pro, right?" he smiled, giving Sofia a kiss. "Now, do you want the happy face onesie or the one with the little teddy bears?" he asked. "What do you think?"

"Happy faces," Callie decided, as she took a bite of her muffin. "Right, Baby? You'll look pretty in yellow."

"Say 'I'll look pretty in anything,'" Mark replied, dressing the little one. "'I'm Sofia!'"

"Soon we'll get you some girl clothes," Callie promised. "We all thought you were a girl, but we didn't know for sure, so we had to buy things that weren't too girly. But now that we know you're a girl, we'll have to dress you up pretty, right? Mama'll have fun with that."

"What?" Arizona asked as she awoke.

"You'll love dressing her up in girly things," her fiancé smiled. "We'll have to send Grandma shopping or something."

"Oh," she said. "You know that box in the closet that I told you you couldn't look in because it had something I was gonna give you after you had the baby in it?"

"Yeah."

"I kinda lied," she said. "It's full of pinkness and frilly stuff."

She smiled. "So, you're telling me that I don't get something for giving birth to your kid?" she asked.

"Here," Mark said, holding Sofia up as if he was going to hand her over.

"Other than her," Callie said. "I wasn't expecting anything, but ever since she said that, I've been thinking that diamonds would be a great trade-off for ten and a half hours of labour."

"Ten and a half hours isn't really that bad for a first baby," Arizona said.

"You have the next one and then we'll talk," Callie said. "It was long enough for me, thanks."

"I know," she said. "And yes, I do have something for you. It's just not something big enough to need a box that big. And it's…well, you see when I give it to you."

"I'm sure I'll love it," she smiled. "And Sof'll love all of her clothes."

"Yep," she nodded.

"What would you have done if we were wrong?"

"Just donate them," she said. "Some of them still had tags, so I could've brought those back. I just knew I wouldn't have to."

"Yeah."

Mark's pager went off. "That means I've gotta go work," he told Sofia. "With new interns."

"They're the babies of the hospital, but they're not nearly as cute as you," Callie said, taking the baby, having finished her breakfast just in time.

"Nope," Mark said. "I'll see you later, 'kay?"

"Say 'bye Daddy.'"

When Mark left, Callie brought the baby girl over to Arizona. Cuddling was about the only thing that Mommy could do with Sofia right now, so they tried to get in as much cuddle time as possible. Callie didn't want her fiancé to feel as though she wasn't doing enough for Sofia. Now Arizona's worries about bonding didn't seem so far-fetched, since Madre, Daddy, Grandma, and Grandpa had to do almost everything. Of course, this was in no way Arizona's fault, but it wasn't exactly going to help.

"Good morning," Arizona smiled. "How's my Sofia today?"

"She's good," Callie said. "Right? You've been happy."

"Did she have a good night?"

"Not too bad," Callie said.

"I wish I was able to get up with her."

"I know," she said. "Maybe we can get you up and out of bed today. I'll go track down a walker."

"That's gonna suck."

"The longer you don't move, the worse it'll get," Callie warned. "I'm an Ortho. I see muscle deterioration all the time."

"I know," she said. "And I know the only way to become less stiff is to move, but it's gonna hurt a lot."

"Yep."

"Plus, if I'm using the walker, I still can't really help with her. While holding onto the walker and all."

"Then I'll have your parents bring the stroller," she said. "You can hold onto that and hopefully Sofia likes it."

"How far do you expect me to get?"

"Nurse's station."

"Fine."

"Sof, tell Mama she can do it."

Sofia started fussing. "She's just about as happy about it as I am," Arizona replied.

"She's hungry," Callie laughed.

* * *

It turned out that Sofia wasn't the biggest fan of her stroller. She preferred being held much more, so her moms waited until she was asleep to take their little walk to the nurse's station. It may not have been very far, but it would take awhile.

Grandma and Grandpa had been visiting today, but Arizona didn't really want an audience for this, so they had gone to get some food.

"You're doing good," Callie told her. "Really."

"I feel like I'm suddenly eighty years old or something," she said.

"That happens when you don't get out of bed for a month," Callie replied. "But it'll get better."

"Yep."

Sofia started waking up. Her big brown eyes looked up at Mommy, and she stretched her tiny arms up.

"Don't start fussin'," Arizona said. "I'm not done my walk yet."

No such luck. The cries, though soft, began.

They had said all throughout Callie's pregnancy that they were not against letting the baby "cry it out" sometimes. Of course, they never intended to let it go on very long, but a little crying wasn't a bad thing. However, now that Sofia was there, they found it harder and harder to actually put that into practice. Even these few little cries were enough for them. Maybe they would try again when Sofia was older, but right now they couldn't. The newborn was simply unable to soothe herself, and it was hard to hear her get upset.

"Sofia!" Arizona smiled, speaking in a sing-song voice. "It's okay! The stroller's not a torture device. Believe it or not, it's actually _made_ for a baby!"

"This would work better if she was old enough to play with toys," Callie said. "I think. But for now, how about I hold her for the rest of the walk?"

"Sure."

Callie took Sofia out of the stroller. "Better?" she asked Sofia. "Oh, I know! You like to be held, huh?"

"I know you're new to this whole parenting thing, but the baby usually goes _in_ the stroller."

Callie turned and saw Will in a pair of light blue scrubs.

"Very funny," she said. "You're an intern here? How come you never told me –"

"I just got a call on Thursday asking if I was still interested," Will said. "Somebody who got accepted ended up being unable to move here or something."

"Oh," she said. "Well, congratulations."

"Same to you," he smiled. "She's beautiful. What did you end up naming her?"

"Sofia," she told him.

"Who are you?" Arizona asked as Will started to walk – pretty slowly - with them.

"He was on the scene when we got into the accident," Callie explained. "He stayed with me half the day."

"Oh."

"And you're looking much better than the last time I saw you," he told Arizona.

"I'm doing much better," she smiled.

"Good."

"I usually hate interns," Callie said. "But I might not give you such a hard time when I get back."

"Thanks," Will laughed. "I'm with Dr. Sloan right now. Or…I should be. But I'm on cappuccino duty."

"Mark was actually starting to become a decent teacher," Arizona said. "What did you do to get on his bad side? I mean, you took care of Calliope, so you'd think he'd at least try not to hate you."

"He doesn't hate him," Callie said. "But he is sleep deprived."

"Ah, true."

"Once he has caffeine in him, you'll learn, I'm sure," Callie told Will. "He's a sleep deprived new daddy right now." Sofia made a little noise. "Right Sof? Daddy's just tired. He tries to help Madre at night time and he's working a lot, too."

Mark was planning to take time off when the baby was born, but given the fact that Arizona, Callie, and Sofia were all still staying at the hospital, continuing to work just seemed like the best choice. They would have their space when he was working, but he'd be easily able to stop in for visits – and to lend a hand – when he had a few moments of down time. Maybe he would take a short leave later, but for now, this was working out.

"So, three parents, huh?" Will asked.

Will had gotten the impression that Mark probably was the father of Callie's baby the day of the accident, but he didn't say anything. He didn't really care all that much to be honest.

"Yep," Callie nodded.

"You're so lucky, Sofia," he told her. "You get extra love, right?"

"And right now, it's helping a lot," Arizona said. "I'm basically useless, so…"

"No, you aren't," Callie said. "You can't exactly do a ton, but that doesn't make you useless. Sofia loves you."

"You feed her, you change her, you give her her little baths…"

This was just the conversation Callie had been dreading. Her fiancé had a point, but she didn't want Arizona to feel that way about it. As soon as she recovered, the blond would no doubt be a very hands-on mom, and that was all that mattered to Callie.

"I have the milk," she said. "And this is the first time you've been out of bed. It's okay. Really."

"But I want to be able to do everything."

"Parenting is hard to begin with," Will told Arizona. "No new parent feels like they're actually competent. At least I didn't. You're working on not only adjusting to a new baby, but retraining your body. There's a learning curve to both of those, and you don't have to be perfect to be a good parent. Sofia doesn't care that you don't change her and feed her. All she cares is that somebody does. And that she's loved. And clearly, she is."

"True."

"And you look a lot more confident than I do," he pointed out. "Not that recovering and parenting can really be compared to being a surgical intern, but…"

"There's a learning curve there, too," Callie said.

"Gaudet!" Mark's voice called out. "Oh," he said, when he realized that Will was talking to Callie and Arizona.

"Be nice," Callie said, handing Sofia over. "And get a baby fix. It's much better than caffeine."

He smiled. "It is."

"She hates the stroller," Arizona informed him. "Wants nothing to do with it."

"Great."

"I'll go get your coffee," Will said.

"Cappuccino," Mark corrected him.

"Right."

"And then you'll teach him?" Callie asked. "Right?"

"I'm going over the burn protocol with all of the interns," Mark nodded. "So, yeah."

"Good."

Sofia's eyes were open, and even though they couldn't really focus yet, she appeared to be looking right at her dad.

"You wanna hear about the burn protocol?" he laughed.

"I think we'll stick to lullabies for now," Callie smiled. "Right, Mija?"

"Sounds like a plan."

"Maybe Mommy can read you a book when we get back to her room," Callie suggested.

"Good idea," Arizona smiled.

"We'll have to start thinkin' of other things Mommy can do with you until she gets all better, huh?" Callie asked. "'Cause she's the best mommy. There's more to being a mommy then changing diapers and stuff."

"Logically I know that," Arizona said.

"It's just that none of this is going like we thought it would," Callie said. "I know."

"Exactly."


	7. Yes

"Let's go outside today," Arizona's mom suggested.

It had been exactly three weeks since Mommy woke up – and since Sofia was born – and Arizona was slowly getting stronger. Daily walks, in combination with other therapies were making her feel more like herself again.

"The sun'll get in Sofia's eyes," Arizona was quick to reply. "It wouldn't if she would just stay in the stroller, but she'll get fussy."

She may have been regaining her strength, but she still wasn't exactly comfortable on her feet. As a doctor, she knew that it was best for her, but that long of a walk seemed pretty tough.

"We brought her a little hat," her mom said.

"But –"

"You just don't want to walk that far," her dad said. "C'mon. It's nice out and we've got all day. You don't have to run or anything."

"Fine," Arizona said, rolling her eyes.

"I'm gonna head back to your room and grab her diaper bag, okay?" Callie asked. "You keep going."

"Yep."

Grandma took Sofia from Callie. "Let's go outside," she said, kissing the little one. "It's nice out today."

On her way back to Arizona's room, Callie walked passed Teddy - who was trying to find a patient's chart - and took her by the arm. Sure, they did need the diaper bag, but there was something else she needed as well.

"What are you -?" she asked, as her friend pulled her into Arizona's room.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" Callie asked her.

"The usual," she said. "Saving lives and heading home to have mind-blowing sex with my husband at night."

"Don't rub it in," she replied. "It has been far too long since Arizona and I have had anything that even comes close to sex. Given the coma and all."

"And the baby you had less than a month ago?"

"True," she said. "But once I heal, that's not much of a deterrent. It's one of the perks of lesbian sex."

"Did you call me in here to talk about sex or do you have a point?"

"Right," she said. "I need you to help me out tomorrow. I've already got Mark on board and Bailey…this isn't a very Bailey thing. I couldn't convince her. But still. The two of you should be able to get it done."

"Get what done?"

"I'm asking Arizona to marry me," she smiled. "Tomorrow. Her parents and I are gonna convince her to go downstairs for lunch, giving you and Mark…I don't know how long to decorate. But hopefully long enough if you work together. It's just…you know, roses and candles. Except we can't light candles so I got those air freshener things that light up and glow like a candle."

"Classy," Teddy teased.

"Hey, I'm limited."

"You do realize you don't have to do this, since Arizona already popped the question, right?"

"But she has no memory of it," Callie said. "Plus, it was in the middle of a not so loving moment, so it deserves a redo. Arizona's mom didn't think it was necessary either, but I finally got her to agree. It was on the way to the jeweler, but still."

Teddy smiled. "So what time are we doing this tomorrow?"

"Eleven work for you?"

"It should," she said.

"Perfect. Thank you."

* * *

A ringing phone woke Callie up the next morning. She rolled over, hoping to answer it before the newborn she had been up with all night awoke yet again. However, there was no baby in the basinet beside her. Her future mother-in-law must have been getting Sofia ready for the day.

"Hey," she answered her new cell phone. "How was your night?"

She knew it was her fiancé because Arizona had called every morning for the last three mornings, ever since Callie and Sofia had been back at home. Sure, she was risking waking the baby, but the odds that Sofia would already be up by that time were on her side.

"I missed my girls."

"We missed you, too."

Callie had gone home with Sofia a few days ago because Arizona was no longer sleeping through the baby's cries at night. Long days of therapy required that she have adequate energy, and sleep deprivation – although she wanted to experience all there was to experience about parenthood - wasn't helping her at all. Callie and Sofia still spent every day with Mommy, but Grandpa Robbins was the one who stayed at the hospital come nighttime now. Nobody liked this new arrangement, but they kept telling themselves that it was only temporary.

They talked for a few minutes about how Sofia's night had gone, and then about what the plans were for the day. Arizona had physio, but other than that, she wasn't expecting a very eventful day at all. Callie had been wondering if Arizona had caught on to the proposal plan, but it didn't seem like it.

Barbara and Sofia appeared in the doorway. The little one's face was a bright shade of red, and her cry was definitely one that was demanding food.

"I've gotta go," she told Arizona. "The baby's hungry."

"Okay."

"I think I'm gonna pump today," she said, quickly wanting to tell Arizona this before hanging up. "I know we said that Baby'd probably be exclusively nursed until they went to Mark's for the first time, just because you knew that breastfeeding was something I wanted to at least try. You knew you could give her a bottle at any time after that, and that would have been a good plan. But I think it's time that you feed her. She's probably not going to end up at Mark's for awhile, and none of us thought this was how her first few weeks would be."

"No," Arizona said. "But okay. I'd love that."

"See you later."

"Bye."

Callie hung up the phone and got out of bed to take her daughter from Arizona's mother.

"Sorry!" she apologized to Sofia, as she began to nurse. "I just wanted to tell Mommy that I'm gonna put some of your milk in a bottle after I feed you. That way, she can feed you which is one more way that she can feel like a good mommy, because she's a great one, huh?"

"How was Arizona's night?" her future-mother-in-law asked her.

"She just said she missed us," Callie answered. "I'm hoping she got more sleep again, though."

"I hope so, too," she agreed. "What do you want for breakfast?" her future mother-in-law asked. "I can make something while you feed her."

"I'm going to get too used to this," Callie smiled. "Scrambled eggs would be great, though. Please."

"Okay."

"Can you wait just a little while to start them, though?" she requested. "That way I can pump, too?"

"Sure," she replied. "When Sofia's finished, we'll go play."

"Sounds good. Thanks."

"Are you ready for today?"

"I'm actually nervous," she admitted. "I know she'll say yes, but I just hope that I can pull off the surprise, and that she'll like what I've done."

"She will."

* * *

"What are you doing here?" Will asked, a few hours later. "Aren't you supposed to be proposing or something?"

He had been standing outside of the daycare, checking up on his children from afar, when she walked up.

"Did Mark tell you?" she asked. "I told him not to tell anybody. If Arizona –"

"Altman told me," he said. "I'm on her service today and she mentioned that she'd be disappearing at some point to decorate."

"Oh."

"I'm sure Arizona has no idea."

"Good," she said. "Which two are yours?"

"The one colouring over there," Will pointed. "And the one trying to eat the crayon over there. Bridget hasn't exactly caught on to the whole colouring thing just yet."

Callie laughed, as she watched the two little blond girls play. "They're adorable."

"Thanks."

"Arizona's giving Sofia her first bottle and she read somewhere that babies make that transition much easier if the one who's been nursing them isn't in the room. They're more likely to take the bottle with less of a problem. So, I thought I'd come down here and try again to convince myself that, one day, we can actually drop her off here and she'll be okay."

"She will," he smiled. "If it helps, most first-time parents feel like that."

"I figured."

"And my kids aren't even babies anymore, yet here I am checking up on them."

"Why don't you go in?"

"Vivi would be fine with it," he explained. "But Bridget would refuse to let me leave again if she saw me."

"Oh."

Will's pager sounded, sending him off on a mission to find Teddy, but Mark walked up just a few minutes later.

"What are you doing here?" Callie asked him.

"Sometimes I come here and try to picture us actually being able to leave her here all day long," he admitted. "I know that a lot of parents do it and it's not a new concept, but all of these kids look like giants compared to Sofia."

"The younger babies are on the other side," Callie said, gesturing with her hand. "Back there. But I'm doing the exact same thing right now."

He laughed. "She'll be fine," he said. "She'll be great. They look like they're having fun, don't they?"

"Definitely."

"And we're in the building if she needs anything."

"Which she won't because the teachers will have it all under control."

"Right."

"Arizona's giving her her first bottle right now," she said.

"Good."

"I don't know what took me so long to think of that," she told him. "I guess I just had our original plan in my head and I didn't think of any other options."

"Probably."

"But now she can feed her, which hopefully makes her feel better. I want her to feel like she's doing a lot for her."

"I'm sure she will," Mark replied. "And she'll love your proposal, too."

* * *

After lunch, Sofia actually seemed content in the stroller. Arizona still preferred it to a walker, so they had persisted in trying to put their little girl in it without having to hear her fuss too much. Right now, she seemed to be tolerating the ride back to Mommy's room well.

"Are you watchin' me?" Arizona asked her. "I'm walkin', Sof! I went all the way to the cafeteria and then back this time, and it wasn't even so bad."

"And you helped!" Callie told the baby. "Well, your stroller did."

"And her cute little face looking up at me," Arizona added. "That helped too."

"Are you proud of Mom?" Barbara asked her granddaughter. "She's been working hard, huh?"

"Before you know it, she'll be chasing you around," Grandpa said.

"I don't know about the 'before you know it' part," Arizona replied. "I'm still not walking unassisted, Dad."

"I know."

"But someday," she agreed. "I'd love to be chasin' you around, Sof."

"Just don't get too big too fast," Madre requested. "Okay?"

"She'll try her best," Arizona smiled. "Right, Sofia?"

"Good."

They rounded the corner and Arizona noticed her room; it was completely decorated with rose petals and faux candles, just the way Callie had envisioned it in her head.

"What is…?" Arizona asked, not even realizing that she had stopped moving.

"Keep going," Callie laughed.

"What did you do?"

"You'll see," she smiled. "C'mon."

Even though she was technically already engaged, Callie found her palms getting clammy. She wanted this to be perfectly romantic and just the proposal that her fiancé deserved. She wanted all of her words to come out right.

They made it into the room and Callie took Arizona's hands, carefully leading her back to sit on the bed.

"Calliope…" Arizona smiled. "Why are you…?"

"Shh…" Callie said, taking the ring box out of her pocket and dropping down, as gracefully as possible given the post-partum belly that was still in her way – to one knee. "I'll do the talking, all you have to say is yes."

"If you think that's how our marriage is going to be, Calliope Torres..." Arizona joked.

"I don't," she smiled. "I think our marriage is going to be…well, realistically we'll face our challenges. I'm not going to say that it'll be without bumps in the road because well…we've had _plenty_ of bumps in the road. Thinking that everything's gonna be smooth sailing all of the sudden is probably naïve."

"Well, this is upbeat," Arizona laughed.

"You know what I'm saying though, right?"

"I do," she nodded.

"Good," she said. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that, whatever happens now, I know we can get through anything together and I can't wait to be your wife. I can't wait to raise our daughter to know what a real marriage looks like. I want her to see what two people who are clearly just..soulmates…what that looks like. That's us."

"Yep," she nodded.

"Arizona Robbins, will you marry me?" she asked, opening the ring box.

"Yes," Arizona smiled. "Yes!"

Callie stood back up and kissed her fiancé. "We're getting married!" she said, not able to stop herself from laughing as the joy rose up within her.

"We were already engaged, though," Arizona said, kissing her again. "Why did you…?"

"I wanted you to remember this moment," she explained. "And honestly, after everything we've been through, our engagement story should be a lot more romantic than your -"

"I was planning something else," she said.

"You were?"

"What did you think your present was?" she asked. "Even you said diamonds."

"Well, I know, but –"

"I guess I just couldn't wait," she said. "I don't know since I don't remember proposing, but I did have a different plan than that."

"Sorry I beat you to it," Callie replied. "I didn't mean to –"

"This was perfect," she reassured her, cupping Callie's face into her hands and pulling her in for yet another kiss. "Don't be sorry."

"Okay."

"And put that ring on my finger now," she said.

"Do you like it?" she asked, of the princess cut, white gold ring.

"I love it," she nodded as Callie slid it on her finger. "And we'll get yours on your finger as soon as I get home."

Callie kissed her. "Sounds good."

"I brought yours," Mrs. Robbins said.

"You knew she had one for me?" Callie asked. "Oh, right. You unpacked the box of girl clothes."

"I did."

"Which is why you were resistant to this whole thing," she realized.

"Yes." She handed the ring box over to her daughter. "Here."

Arizona opened it and slipped Callie's ring, set with three pear-shaped diamonds, onto her finger. "There," she smiled. "It's official."

Sofia let out a little cry, letting everyone know that she had had enough of her stroller now. They all decided to take it as her way of saying that she wanted to celebrate, though.

"Are your mommies getting married?" Grandma asked as she picked her up. "What do you think about that, Miss Sofia? Are you ready to be a flower girl?"

"I think she might be a bit young, Mom," Arizona said.

"Not if we have a long engagement," Callie replied.

"So that I can be fully recovered?"

"Yes," she nodded. "And so that we can go all out."

"You want something big, fancy, and expensive?" she asked.

"Not necessarily expensive," she said. "But special. My first wedding was at a chapel in Vegas. This time, I want something that makes us really feel like brides."

"That I can agree with," she smiled. "Yeah. Our day needs to really celebrate us."

"It will."


	8. Mommy's Home

"Are you sure you don't need us to stay?" Arizona's mother asked, as she and her husband helped to pack up Arizona's room the afternoon that she was discharged.

They had booked a flight for a few hours later, but they were more than willing to stay in Seattle if their daughter and soon-to-be daughter-in-law felt like they still needed help. While Arizona completely appreciated this – and was very grateful that her parents had put their lives on hold for so long – she felt like she just needed to finally have some alone time at home with her girls. She still wasn't fully recovered, but she was doing much better and she couldn't wait to truly get a taste of full-time motherhood.

"We're sure," she nodded, packing up the first picture of her and Sofia together. "I know you want to make sure I'm okay, and you want to spoil your grandbaby, but we haven't lived a normal family life yet. Sofia's ten weeks old and, even though she's been here every day, it's not the same as being at home with them."

"Okay."

"It's kind of hard to believe that everything's going to be…normal now," Callie said. "No more back and forth. No more being separated."

"Yeah," Arizona smiled, giving her fiancé a kiss. "Pretty awesome, right?"

"For sure," she said.

"We're gonna miss her so much," Grandma said.

"You'll be back soon," Arizona told her. "And for a much happier reason."

"I expect plenty of pictures."

"I don't think that'll be a problem," Callie laughed. "Mark took her to her pediatrician appointment this morning, and we got all those pictures. The appointment wasn't even an hour long. Everybody's just a little too into documenting Sofia."

"That was today?" Arizona asked.

Understandably, with the routine for every single day of the past ten weeks being almost the same, she lost track of her days sometimes. Aside from the calendar, there wasn't much of a way of telling a Monday afternoon from a Friday afternoon.

"Yeah," she nodded. "You were still asleep, but I'll show you the pictures when we're at home."

"Home," Arizona smiled. "Finally."

"It's a little different," Callie warned. "Basically Baby Central. I used to think we had a good sized place, but now with the swing and the bouncer and all of the toys…"

She smiled. "Sofia's taken over."

"That she has," Callie said. "But she's growing and everything's right on track. She's gained five pounds since birth and she's a whole inch taller."

"Didn't we already know she was growing?" Arizona asked. "Those cheeks just keep getting chubbier and chubbier and she's got that adorable little roll under her arm now…"

"Yeah," Callie replied. "But it's nice to hear."

"For sure."

"Let's get you home," she said. "I, for one, have had enough of this place."

"Good thing you work here," Grandpa Robbins said.

"I'm going to enjoy my last two weeks of leave without any hospital visits," Callie said. "Promise."

Callie had taken an extended leave, not really feeling like she could manage motherhood, taking care of Arizona, and working all at the same time. In two weeks, her leave would be up and Arizona would then stay home with Sofia for awhile, until she was able to return to work. Mark had not taken any actual leave, instead opting to take sporadic days off whenever something – like Sofia's appointment – was going on. It may not have pleased the chief very much, but it was the best plan the three of them could come up with.

"Let's get out of here," Arizona smiled.

"Yes."

* * *

"Daddy can't get anything done, can he?" Mark asked.

He had Sofia laid out on the floor enjoying some tummy time, figuring that he would then be able to eat some lunch. He would be in the room with her the entire time to supervise, but his hands would finally be free. The little one wasn't having it, though. She liked the playtime, but the minute that Daddy would try to stop playing with her, she would start fussing about it.

He gave up and laid down on the floor as well, so that he and his daughter were face to face. "Fine," he said, kissing her little nose. "Mommy and Madre'll be home soon anyways. I know Mommy's gonna wanna play, and play, and play, Sof."

She smiled her big, gummy smile and began cooing as if she was trying to contribute to the conversation.

"She will!" he smiled. "She's been in the hospital since before you were even born, and now she gets to come home and play with you!"

He pressed the button on a musical toy and Sofia was silenced, clearly in awe of this entertaining sound she was hearing. Her eyes grew wide, only to return to their usual expression when it stopped.

"Sofia do it," he encouraged, taking hold of her pudgy hand and helping her to press down the button. "Listen!" he gasped. "Do you like that song?"

The cooing began again, as if she was trying to sing along, but was horribly off key.

"You're such a funny kid," he told her. "If Daddy keeps playin' the music, can I go eat my sandwich?"

He didn't have to find out. It was then that Callie knocked on his door and she, Arizona, and the grandparents walked in.

"Look who it is," Mark told Sofia, even though she was facing away from the door.

"Mommy's home!" Callie said, picking the baby up and handing her over to Arizona.

Arizona kissed Sofia's cheek. "I came to see you this time instead of you comin' to see me," she told her. "What do you think of that?"

Sofia began cooing.

"Is that 'I'm so happy you're home, Mama?'" Callie laughed.

"I'm sure it is," Mark nodded.

"How's she been since getting the vaccines this morning?" Madre asked.

"She was a bit fussy, but she napped for about an hour and she seemed to be feeling much better when she woke up."

"Good," Arizona said, stroking Sofia's little fist. "Those needles hurt my baby, didn't they? But really, they're good for you. They make sure you don't get icky stuff that we don't want our Sof gettin'."

Sofia looked up at Arizona and seemed to be contently studying Mommy, as if there was something really interesting about her today.

"Mommy's home!" Grandma exclaimed. "Can you believe it, Sofia?"

"Do you wanna go show Mom everything that's in the apartment now?" Grandpa asked.

"Sounds good," Arizona smiled. "Say 'buh bye, Daddy!'" she told Sofia, moving the little one's arm up and down in a waving motion.

"Have fun," Mark smiled. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Let's go see what you've done with the place," Arizona said, as they went across the hall. "I love your headband with this pink little bow on it," she told her as she kissed her head. "I'm gonna guess Grandma got it for you."

"Yes, I did," Barbara confirmed. " Because every baby girl needs lots and lots of pretty bows."

Sofia smiled.

"You agree?" Callie asked as she opened the door. "Sof, say 'welcome home, Mama!'"

"Thank you!" Arizona said, laughing as she waded her way through baby gear in order to make it to the couch.

She was curious to see Sofia's completed nursery for herself, to cook her own dinner, to take a long, hot shower, and to sleep in her own bed, but for now she just wanted to sit on the couch and cuddle Sofia without some nurse or physiotherapist pulling her away for anything.

Callie sat down beside them. "This is so much better," she smiled.

"Yep," Arizona nodded in agreement.

"Put her up on your knees and hold her," Grandma suggested.

"She gets a kick out of standing like a big girl," Callie said. "I did it last night just before bedtime, and she ended up staying up for fifteen extra minutes because she was cooing and smiling so much. She didn't want to stop."

"Is Madre already lettin' you stay up past bedtime?" Arizona asked. "Only ten weeks old and breaking the rules, Sofia?"

Sofia cooed.

"You're cute enough to get away with it?" she asked. "I'd have to agree. You are!"

She held her up and let the baby "stand" with support.

"So strong!" Callie clapped. "Look at you!"

"Yay Sofia!" Arizona smiled. "This is fun, huh?"

"Tell Mommy. Say 'I think it's my new favourite thing!'"

"Mommy's never gonna get anything done, Sof," Arizona said. "How can I when you're around to play with?"

* * *

"I think I got a little too used to sleeping through the night," Arizona yawned as Callie walked into Sofia's nursery to find Mommy trying to rock the baby to sleep that night.

Callie laughed. "Probably."

"I've got this," Arizona said. "Go back to sleep. She'll settle eventually."

"Yeah," Callie replied, taking the ten-week-old into her arms. "But she'll settle a lot faster like this," she explained as she started to slowly walk around the room with Sofia.

Callie had tried not to get in the way of letting Arizona care for Sofia tonight. Mommy was much more able to do things for Sofia now; it was nice to see and she really wanted to be supportive as Arizona stepped completely into her motherly role. However, she knew that there was a much easier way to settle Sofia down, and she couldn't help put point it out. It was three in the morning and everyone needed some sleep.

"Since when does she like that best?"

"Since about a week after we came home," Callie said. "All of the sudden, it just…worked."

"Oh."

"You're feeling bad that you didn't know, aren't you?"

"If you didn't know, wouldn't you?"

"You've missed out on a lot," Callie said. "That's a fact and it's not something either of us like. You missed the last few weeks of my pregnancy, you missed her birth, and you've missed out on parts of her first months here. I hate that, but it's what we're dealing with," she said, as she kept walking and Sofia settled right down. "But we need to focus on the fact that you're here now and, in the grand scheme of things, those things aren't the end of the world. You'll be her mom for the rest of her life. You'll have plenty of time to get to know her."

"I guess."

"Right, Sofia?" Callie asked the baby. "Mommy'll get used to this."

"What else have I missed that she likes? She loves to be held like she's standing, she prefers walking over the rocking chair…"

"Right now, it's three in the morning and I'm so tired that I can't even think straight," Callie admitted. "The person who discovered that caffeine in breast milk affects babies was clearly a man, because a nursing mom would never seek out a way to deprive herself."

"Sorry."

"But I'll catch you up later. Then, as soon as I do that, things will probably change and we'll both be trying to figure her out all over again."

Arizona smiled. "I'd love that."

"And once I go back to work, it'll be just you and her. You'll really get to know each other then."

"I know," she smiled. "I can't wait."


	9. Mommy and Baby

**I'm so sorry that this chapter has taken me far too long to get up. I changed my mind about the details of it a lot, and I'm hoping that it was worth the wait. :) I'll do my best to get the next one up much sooner. **

* * *

"Strawberry banana smoothies, toast with peanut butter, and orange slices," Arizona said as she placed each item onto a tray. "Madre should like it, huh?" she asked the three-month-old who was happily nested in the new wrap that they had just bought after finally accepting the fact that – most of the time – their little one didn't have any interest in being set down when they were trying to do something.

"Arizona?" Callie's voice called out from the bedroom. "Where are you?"

"Let's go surprise her," Arizona smiled, picking up the tray and beginning to walk toward the bedroom. "Good morning," she said when a similar smile spread across her fiancé's face at the sight of Arizona and Sofia.

"You cooked for me?" she asked.

"Not exactly cooked. More like blended, toasted, and sliced," she said. "I was going to make waffles, but we're out of syrup and they just aren't the same without it, so I got off easy this morning."

"It still looks great," Callie told her as she reached for the tray that Arizona was putting down for her. "And Sofia, you're home from Daddy's early! I'll actually get to squeeze in some playtime before I have to leave."

It was Callie's first day back to work. Of course, she was excited to get back into the OR, but she had also been feeling bad about her early start time, since she didn't think she'd get to see Sofia at all this morning. This helped make her transition back to work just a little easier.

"Mark got called in," Arizona explained. "So this sweet girl and I made breakfast together. Oh, and we'll make a better dinner. If it's nice out, we'll walk to the grocery store."

"If not, I bring home take-out?"

"If not…" Arizona considered for a second. "Well, then we raid Daddy's fridge. Between the two fridges, I should be able to make something decent."

"Leave him with something to eat, please," Callie laughed. "If you don't, he'll get pathetic."

"I will," she said. "I have to admit, he's not _that_ bad. I mean, he's Mark Sloan, which means he's not exactly -"

Arizona was certainly still adjusting to all aspects of parenthood. In her case, that meant getting used to sharing a child with Mark. While it would have been much easier if only she and Callie were parenting her child, the blond had to admit that this unique arrangement was working. Mark was learning – even if it was occurring slowly – to respect their space as a couple and everyone seemed to have Sofia's best interest in mind. Some of their conversations were still awkward and somewhat tense, but it was tolerable and worth it for Sofia.

"Yeah, yeah," Callie said. "You don't have to think he's amazing. I probably wouldn't –"

"Can we stop talking about Mark in our bedroom? I can think of something much better we could be doing."

"The baby's wide awake and she'll only fuss if we put her down," Callie smiled.

"I was gonna say we could cuddle with our girl and enjoy breakfast in bed," Arizona replied, undoing the wrap that had held Sofia before they got into the bed.

"That is the second best use I can think of for our bed," Callie said. "And with this little one here this morning, I think it's the perfect one."

"Me too," Arizona said, kissing Sofia's fist. "Right? Just you and me today, Baby Girl! Madre's going to work!"

"Other mommies must not have babies as cute as you," Callie said. "How am I supposed to leave you and go fix bones all day?"

"Because you love your job," Arizona said. "And because I'll be fine here with her."

"If you get worn out or anything…"

"I won't."

"Sleep when she does."

"You and I both know there are so many other things that'll need to be done by then," Arizona replied.

"You're like a little housewife," Callie joked.

"Oh, no I'm not," she replied. "I'm just a surgeon. I'm not used to having time on my hands. Which is great because Sofia'll keep me busy, but I will not be sleeping when she does. Hate to rub it in, but I get caffeine."

"I know," she said. "But I don't need to come home to a spotless apartment just because you're home."

"No, but what else am I supposed to do?"

"Sleep."

"She was at Mark's last night," she said, taking a bite out of a piece of toast as her fiance sipped from her smoothie. "I've slept."

"True," she said. "Then…read the next chapter in that parenting book and figure out what we're in for when she's a little older."

She smiled. "Lots of fun, right Sof?" Arizona asked. "Sitting up, solids, all that stuff."

Sofia made a pouty face. "Are you not ready for that yet?" Callie laughed. "What's with the face?"

"Say 'I'm silly Sofia!'"

"You and Mommy are gonna have fun today, aren't you?" she asked.

"Hope so!" Arizona said, making a face at her daughter. "Yeah!"

* * *

"Remind me that working is worth it," Callie said, as she sat down to lunch with a few of her fellow Attendings that afternoon.

It felt like she had barely made it through the morning. She was missing her baby and she really wanted to check in on Sofia and Arizona, but she didn't want Arizona to feel as though she didn't think that she could handle their little one all day. She may not have been back to her old self just yet, but Callie had no doubt that her fiancé would take great care of Sofia. Still, not being able to call and hear about their morning was bothering her.

"Working is worth it," Teddy smiled. "Sofia's gonna be the same when you get home."

"That's not true," Bailey said. "They pick up new things so fast."

"She's right," Mark replied. "Remember how I missed her first smile when I took that double shift?"

"Not helping," Callie told them. "That wasn't what I was thinking about, but now I am. Thanks."

"What's wrong?"

"I just want to check in on them," she said. "Not because I think I need to, but just because I want to know what they're up to."

"Feedings, diaper changes and playtime," Bailey said. "The same things all babies and their stay-at-home moms are up to."

"I just wish I had gotten the same opportunity Arizona has."

"The opportunity to end up in a coma for a month, miss your child's birth and basically their first couple of months, and then to still not be in good enough shape to work?" Mark asked.

"When you put it that way, no," Callie said.

"Glad I could help."

"How does that help?" Bailey asked.

"She's probably feeling better about being here."

"That's not what I meant," Callie said. "I meant that I wish my time off with Sofia could've actually been just about bonding and baby stuff."

"I know," he said. "Look at it this way. You and I still got a lot more time with her then Arizona ever did when she was a patient here. This is just going to…balance it out. And it's nice that Sof gets to be spoiled by Mommy for awhile. Plus, we don't have to put her in daycare nearly as early as we should've had to."

"Good point."

"And trust me, it makes coming home to her so much better," Mark said.

"Tuck's old enough now that he can count down the days to my next day off," Bailey smiled. "He gets so excited."

"I never want Sofia to get old enough for that," Callie replied, taking a bite of her lunch. "That seems…old."

"Too bad she's gonna be the smartest kid ever," Mark smiled.

"Isn't that a little too high of an expectation to place on an infant?" Teddy asked.

"Three surgeons for parents," Mark said. "She's not gonna be mediocre."

"For now, let's focus on getting her to sleep through the night," Callie smiled. "Genius baby or not, she's waking up far too many times for my liking."

"She'll get the hang of it soon," Bailey said. "At least somewhat."

Just then, Callie received a text. Arizona had sent her a picture of Baby Sofia, fast asleep inside her carseat, while riding in a shopping cart. There was a message from Mommy that said she figured Madre was probably needing a Sofia fix right about now.

"I love my life," she smiled.

"Even work?" Teddy asked.

"It's a work in progress."

* * *

"Madre said she liked your picture," Arizona told Sofia an hour later when the little one woke up from her third little nap of the day so far.

This last one had given Mommy the chance to get all of their groceries put away, but not quite enough time to do the dishes that she had been hoping to get around to. She debated putting Sofia into her wrap again, just to get them done, but the smile she received when she spoke to her sweet girl was enough to make her decide against it.

"She did!" she said, picking her up. "She told me to give you a kiss from her," she said as her lips made contact with the little one's cheek. "One from Madre!" she smiled, before repeating it. "And one from Mommy!"

Sofia started to fuss, no doubt because her diaper was wet. Mommy laid her down on her change table and started to change her.

"What are we gonna do after this?" she asked her, in order to keep her happy during the change. "It's just you and me for the next…five hours. What sounds fun? Should we sit in your rocking chair and read some books? I know you don't like that thing at nighttime, but maybe it's good for reading. I think so."

Sofia started cooing.

"Yes, Mommy?" Arizona smiled. "We're gonna get to know each other, huh? It might take us a bit longer, but we'll do it. Do you know why? Because ever since I heard your heartbeat for the first time, I knew you were my Sofia."

Sofia smiled.

"I did!" she told her. "Ever since your heart was teeny, teeny tiny. You were still in Madre's tummy."

More cooing followed the smile, and Mommy took this as a sign that her little one wanted to add to the conversation.

"You love me, too?" she asked, doing up Sofia's new diaper. "Yay! So much love for Sofia. 'Cause we love Madre, and we know that Daddy loves Sofia, too. Right?"

The baby smiled again.

"You're so smiley today! We get more and more smiles out of you every day, don't we?"

Sofia's smile suddenly turned into a pouty, not so impressed expression.

"You've had enough of this diaper change," Mommy said as she finished getting the baby's clothes back on. "I can take a hint." She picked her up. "Let's go read a book. There's this one we have – Grandma used to read it to Mommy and Uncle Tim when we were little – it's called 'Love You Forever.' Wanna read it?"

Sofia's eyes grew wide as she listened to Mommy.

"Yep!" Arizona said. "Forever! That's how much mamas love their babies, and I think it's the perfect book for us to read today. Let's go find it."

* * *

"You've actually managed to make dinner?" Callie asked when she walked through the door to find Arizona cutting up some vegetables that she was planning to put on top of a pizza.

"Shh…" she replied, holding up the video baby monitor. "I _just_ got her to sleep ten minutes ago. We had a good morning, but she's been fussy for the last two hours."

"Sorry."

"So, I wouldn't expect to come home to dinner being made most nights. This took a long time of starting, then having to stop when she was fussy, then going back to it. But today was still a good day."

"Good."

"We're getting to know each other," Arizona told Callie. "Did you know she has a favourite blanket? I brought a few to the grocery store, but she would only let me lay the red polka dot one over her. The pink one and the orange one seemed to annoy her."

"Maybe because the red polka dot one is softer?"

"I think so."

"Makes sense," she said. "But no, I didn't know that. When she refuses a blanket, I just assume she doesn't want any blanket."

"Next time try the red polka dots."

"I will," she smiled. "I'm gonna go peak in on her."

"Okay."

"Thank you," she told her, giving her a kiss.

"For taking care of our baby?"

"For deciding that she was _our _baby in the first place," Callie clarified. "She's going to be such an awesome kid with you as her mommy."

"The same could be said for you," Arizona told her.

"Thanks."


	10. A Couple Of Firsts

Arizona did up the soft, feathery costume and set her little one down so that she could step back and snap a quick picture with her cellphone. She sent Callie a picture almost daily now; at first, it was simply so that Callie could see what Sofia was up to, but it had become just as rewarding for Arizona. She was learning that life as a stay-at-home mom – though she adored the time she got to spend with Sofia – was pretty lonely. She would sometimes go all day without any adult contact, which was starting to bother her after a couple of weeks. The poor cashier at the grocery store probably got an earful now, just because it was nice to talk to someone who could respond with actual words and sentences. Therefore, the responses that Callie would send back often made Arizona's day a little easier.

Sofia was about to start fussing, so Mommy slipped the matching yellow pacifier into her mouth just before she took the picture.

"You're not gonna give Madre a big Sofia smile?" she asked. "We have to show her your Halloween costume! You're the cutest little chick I've ever seen!"

Sofia smiled.

"Do you like chickens, too?" she asked, as she took the pacifier back. "Mama does. You get to be one soon because it's almost Halloween. You're too young for candy this year, but there's a little party for the Peds. kids at the hospital and we'll bring you there, okay? It'll be fun."

Arizona's phone sounded. "Oh!" she gasped, in order to get a reaction from the baby. "I bet that's Madre!"

She read the text and smiled. Callie was coming home for lunch. Of course, there was no guarantee that she'd be able to stay very long at all, but a few extra minutes with her fiancé would be nice. Callie lit up when she came home to Sofia, and Arizona would get to witness it twice today. She would also be able to have a real conversation, even if it was a short one.

"She's going to have lunch with us! Well, with me. You've already eaten, right? But she's gonna bring home some dinner for you because your milk stash is runnin' a little low."

Sofia began kicking her little legs and cooing.

"Are you excited?" she asked. "She gets to see you in your costume, too. She said it was cute, but now she'll get to see it in person."

Sofia yawned and the tiny whimpers that let Mommy know that she was tired began.

"Is it time for a little after lunch nap?" she asked, picking her up and placing a gentle kiss on her head. "Madre'll be home and you'll be sleepin'? That's okay. You're extra beautiful when you sleep. You get that from Madre too, you know."

Arizona settled Sofia, still comfortable in her costume, in for a little nap and then set about making a quick lunch for her and Callie. It turned out to be nothing fancy – just sandwiches with some vegetables and dip – but that was okay.

"Hey," Callie smiled when she walked through the door and gave Arizona a kiss. "Did you already put Sofia down for her nap?"

"Yeah," Arizona nodded. "How'd you manage to come home?"

"None of my patients seem like they're going to need me in the next forty-five minutes or so. Even if they do, we live so close that I can be back there in a few minutes if I have to. I checked on everybody and then I thought that since everybody was doing good, I'd come home."

Arizona smiled. "I'm glad," she said. "But let's hope you didn't just jinx yourself."

"I didn't," she said as they sat down. "Plus, I have a surprise for you."

"For me?" she asked. "Why?"

"I know you've been feeling a little…what's the word?"

"Stir crazy?" Arizona answered with a little chuckle. "Yeah."

"And I've been working so much."

"It's okay," she said. "I understand. You were off for awhile. You can't just come back and have a bunch of days off. And I _do _love staying home. I just don't love the actual staying home that involves. If I could drive, that would be one thing, but there are only so many places that I can walk to around here with a baby. If I try to go too far, she gets fussy and then I'm that mom. You know? The one with the baby who won't stop crying? People love me. And then we still have to walk all the way home."

"I get it," Callie said. "You don't have to explain. Now that Sofia's on a routine, you're limited to what you can do. If she can't eat or sleep when she wants to, it's just not a good day for either of you. So yeah. You're here all day playing with a baby who can't do much, except for be cute."

"Which is awesome. It would just be more awesome if I wasn't the only adult here."

"I know," she said with a smile. "Which is why I've planned a little trip for us."

"How did you get time off? Let alone enough for a trip?"

"Okay, so it's not exactly a trip," Callie admitted. "But it is one night at that B&B that we never made it to. I thought we should this time. We leave November first. I'm working until about noon, and then I'm off the next day. I know it's not ideal, but –"

"What's the catch?" Arizona wondered as she ate.

"I switched with somebody whose birthday happens to be a couple days after we get back. So I'm working a double shift after that."

"That part isn't my favourite," Arizona replied. "But at least we get some alone time."

"Yeah."

"Does Mark have all that time off, too?" Arizona asked. "What about Sofia?"

"I told him my plan and asked him if he could make arrangements. I knew him getting the time off might not happen, but I thought he could get a trusty babysitter or something."

"Babysitter?" Arizona asked.

They had been lucky enough that their little one had yet to be left with someone they didn't know very well, even during the time that Arizona was in the hospital. They had always found a way to have friends or family stay with her if one of the three parents couldn't. It wasn't that they were against babysitters, but they liked this system more. Now, Arizona was probably a little too used to it, though.

"We wouldn't leave her with just anybody off the street," Callie said. "We'd interview them and make sure Sofia would be fine with them."

"I know."

"But he said that we won't even have to do that. He worked it out and between him, Derek, Teddy and Henry, Sofia'll be all set. It's mostly him, but he will have to work a little."

"Sounds good to me."

"Did you go to physio today?"

"That's tomorrow," she said.

"Oh, right."

"And thank God the secretary there loves Sofia, because she always, always starts crying when I'm in the middle of an exercise. She's fine during the bus ride there and everything, but it's like as soon as she realizes that she doesn't have somebody's undivided attention, she freaks out. So the secretary comes over and keeps her company."

"Good."

They continued to eat while discussing a few of Callie's cases as well as how Sofia's day had been so far. Just as they finished up their lunch, Sofia awoke and began to cry.

"Hello!" Callie smiled when she went into the room to pick her up. "You're gettin' ready for Halloween, aren't you? You look so cute, Baby Girl. Mommy was right. You do make the perfect little chick. Halloween'll be so fun in a few weeks."

* * *

In an effort to ensure that Seattle Grace Mercy West's youngest patients slept well at night, their Halloween party started at two o'clock in the afternoon. Sofia had spent her morning with Mark, who had just dropped her off in time to get ready to go to the party.

"Did you have fun with Daddy this morning?" Callie, who had worked a night shift the night before in order to be able to spend the rest of the day with her girls, asked. "I was at work and Mommy was helping set up for the party we're gonna go to, so you hung out with Daddy, right? You go back to his place in the morning so that I can take Mommy away for a little bit, okay?"

Sofia started cooing as Callie dressed her in her costume. She seemed pretty alert right now, meaning that she would probably love all of the attention she was bound to get at the party.

"Sounds good?" Callie asked.

"What sounds good?" Arizona wondered, coming into Sofia's room after she had finished packing for their little getaway.

"She thinks it'd be good if she stays with Dad so we can go away for a little bit."

Arizona smiled. "Yep! But we'll be home before you know it, okay?"

She bent down to kiss her girl and Sofia grabbed onto a piece of her hair. Arizona unclenched the baby's fist and Sofia giggled.

"Is it funny to pull Mom's hair?" Callie asked. "I don't think so!"

"You're almost ready to go to your first party, Big Girl," Arizona told her little one as Callie did up the costume. "It'll be so fun!"

"You think so?" Callie asked in response to Sofia's cooing. "Just wait until you're old enough for the candy! Then it's _really _fun stuff."

"I told a few of my little buddies in Peds. that you were coming when I was there earlier," Arizona told her daughter. "They're excited to see you."

"Are you a popular girl?" Callie asked, picking the baby up. "What do you think?"

"I think so," Arizona smiled. "Who doesn't love Miss Sofia?"

* * *

"Dr. Robbins…?" one little boy who had been Arizona's patient since he was a year old asked at the party.

"Yes?" she smiled.

"That's your baby?"

"Yep," she nodded. "Sofia, this is Nolan. Can you say hi?"

"She can't talk," he said. "She's too little."

"I know," she chuckled. "But she likes to coo. She talks in her own little way."

"Oh," he said. "My baby sister only knows how to say 'Dada' and 'dog,'" he said, pretty unimpressed.

"She'll learn more words soon."

"I hope so," he said. "Or else she's boring."

"You think so?"

"Yeah."

Arizona noticed a little girl in the back of the room, who wasn't really participating in any of the Halloween activities. She didn't know the girl, but she felt bad that it didn't seem like the tiny blond was having much fun.

"Sof, say 'see you later, Nolan,'" she told the baby, waving her hand for her. "We're gonna go make another new friend."

"Bye, Sofia," Nolan smiled.

Arizona made her way over to the little girl. She could tell by the cast on her left arm that the child had had some sort of Orthopedic treatment, and she wondered if Callie had been her doctor.

"Hi," she smiled. "I'm Dr. Robbins and this is Sofia."

"Hi," the child replied.

"Are you feeling okay?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Is something wrong?"

"I don't know where Mommy went," she told her. "She was here and she said 'be right back' but she not comin' back yet."

"I'm sure she'll be back in a minute," Arizona said.

"Yeah?"

"I do," she nodded. "She probably just went to talk to your doctor or something."

"You know Dr. Callie?"

"Yep."

"She maked my arm better."

"She's good at that," Arizona smiled.

"I like her."

"Me too," Arizona agreed. "Right, Sof? We like her."

"The baby know her, too?"

"She's Sofia's Madre," she smiled.

"What's that?"

"Her mommy," Arizona said. "Sofia gets two mommies. Me and Dr. Callie."

"Mommies are the best," she smiled.

"Sofia's lucky to have two, huh?"

"She like Halloween?"

"I think she does," Arizona said. "What do you think?"

"It fun," she said.

Callie came over with a tall blond woman that Arizona assumed was the little girl's mom. The little girl lit right up.

"Sof, did you meet Penelope?" Callie asked.

"We did," Arizona answered. "We're meeting lots of new friends."

"She so friendly," Penelope said.

"She is," Callie agreed.

* * *

"Do you miss her already?" Callie asked the next day.

They had just dropped Sofia off at Mark's and started driving to the bed and breakfast. It had been about twenty minutes, and Callie was already feeling bad about being away from their baby girl overnight. Of course, Sofia had spent the night at Mark's before, but this was different. This time, Callie and Arizona would be away for the night instead of so close anyway.

"Yeah," Arizona said. "But we won't be gone long and she'll be fine. That's what I keep telling myself."

"Are we too overprotective?" she wondered.

"Maybe a little," Arizona laughed. "But I think most mamas are."

"Good."

"And we need this."

Callie smiled. "Definitely. It's been a good couple days. Sofia enjoyed her first party, and now we're taking our first trip away from her."

"One of those is decidedly happier than the other, though."

"Oh, once we get there, it'll be happier," Callie said. "A night _full_ of happier."

"I like the way you think," Arizona smiled.

Their relationship had changed lately. Of course, part of this was due to the adjustment they had undergone when Sofia was born, but Arizona's coma and recovery didn't exactly help. This little vacation would hopefully restore some of the passion that they were both missing so much.

"This trip is all about us," Callie told her. "We were supposed to take it before Baby Girl even got here, and we're going to enjoy it just as much. We'll just have to get over missing her."

"And we will," she agreed. "We'll be back to her so soon."

"Yeah."


	11. Alone Time

**I apoligize for the fact that this chapter is on the short side. I'm getting ready to go on vacation next week, so that's keeping me busy. Plus, something else came up that will leave me with no time to write for the next few days (which is when I had orginally planned to have time). I just wanted to get _something_ up for you since I won't even have access to a computer at all next week. I didn't want anyone to have to wait that long. Hopefully this chapter is still enjoyable even if it's not a long one. I'll be working on this story some more once I get back from my vacation. Thanks for understanding.**

* * *

Callie and Arizona had arrived at the bed and breakfast only a few hours ago, but they were already enjoying the privacy and lack of responsibility that came along with the four walls of their room. There would be no interruptions from a crying baby or a couple of pagers right now. Even Mark wouldn't be calling them. For one, he would be busy with the little one, plus they had told him that – if and when they felt the need to check in on sweet Sofia – they would be the ones calling.

For now, all that they needed was a bed and the bottle of massage oils that they had brought with them. It may have still been light outside, but they had begun their "night" already. Right now, they lay there with their bodies intertwined with each other's and simply took in the moment.

"This was a good idea," Arizona smiled, giving Callie a lingering kiss.

"I thought so," Callie replied.

"It's almost like we get two honeymoons," she told her. "Only we aren't actually newlyweds just yet."

"When do you want to have the wedding?" she wondered.

She definitely already felt married and she was sure her fiancé felt the same way. They shared a life together and they had a great little family. To Callie, that was what marriage truly meant. It wasn't about the big day. That would come, but the commitment had already been made. Often people in their situations threw weddings in order to make the way that they felt legal, but unfortunately, the State of Washington didn't afford these two ladies that same right. Still, they were going to have a wedding; it would be just the same as any other and its purpose would be to celebrate their love. While they wished for the legal rights they didn't have, they also knew that they didn't need them in order to show each other – and everyone else – how much they meant to one another.

"I've always wanted a summer wedding," she smiled, imagining it. "Outdoor. It would be in the morning since we wouldn't want it too be too warm, and also since, if we did it like that, we'd be able to spend the whole rest of the day celebrating instead of spending half of it getting ready. It would mean we'd have to start getting ready at the crack of dawn, but we're mommies. And surgeons. We can do early."

"And that would mean we'd spend less of the day apart, too."

"Apart?"

"So that we don't see each other before the ceremony."

She smiled. "Oh, that's silly. I know its tradition and you're traditional, but we're already a having super traditional "invite everybody we know and their plus one" wedding. I see no reason why we can't get ready together. It's not going to jinx us. We've broken up and gotten back together how many times? Plus, I was in a coma for almost a month and I'm still here. What else could possibly happen?"

"Let's not ask for it," Callie said. "But okay. Compromise is good. We'll get ready together."

"Good."

"Are we going to do it this summer?" Arizona asked. "I kind of liked the idea of waiting until Sofia's a little older. Not that she'll really understand for awhile, but she can at least be a part of it if she's older. That way, we can show her the video and the pictures and she can know that we included her in our celebration."

"We could wait," Callie said. "But if we did it in say, August, she'd be thirteen months. That's old enough for her to be there – and awake the whole time – at the ceremony. Sure, including a toddler might get interesting, but who cares? It's our day."

"True," she said. "Okay."

"I want to be your wife as soon as possible," she told her, giving her a kiss.

"Same here," she agreed.

"Honeymoon in Spain?" she asked, thinking back to that conversation that they had had when Arizona was still not willing to have children.

Thankfully, that had worked out. They had the world's most perfect baby girl – at least by their standards – and Arizona was enjoying motherhood just as much as Callie was. There had been some unique challenges that came with Arizona's introduction into parenthood, but she was Mommy. There was absolutely no denying that now. She and Sofia both looked at each other as if the other made the world go around. It was everything Callie had ever imagined, yet they were very much still able to do the things that Arizona had planned long before a baby was a part of those plans. This, to Callie, was the definition of marriage. Together, they were able to make each other's dreams come true, and fall in love with those dreams themselves along the way.

"Absolutely."

"I may not look as great in that bikini as you originally imagined, but hey," she said, reaching for the massage oils and beginning to rub them into Arizona all over again as they talked. "We'll make it work."

"What's so wrong with your body?"

"Left over baby weight that, other than breastfeeding and all of the time I spend walking around the hospital, I don't have time to work off. Oh, and these," she added, tracing a hand across the stretch marks that their daughter had been gracious enough to leave her with.

"You forgot how incredible your boobs are," she smiled. "Not that they haven't always been, but pregnancy and nursing have certainly helped them out."

"Until I stop nursing and they deflate and sag."

"Shh…" she said, holding a finger up to her fiancé's lips in an effort to silence her. "Let's not use words like 'sag' on our romantic getaway."

"Good point."

"But I won't care," she said. "Calliope, you gave me an amazing daughter. Those stretch marks aren't _anything _to be ashamed of. They're something to be proud of. You grew a _person._ I know a lot of people do it, but when you think about it, it's actually pretty unreal."

Callie smiled.

"And, for the record, I'll love your body no matter what happens to it."

"I know," she said. "But still. You have this perfect body. And the same kid."

"And maybe I'll have the next one," she said, kissing her. "And we'll both have the stretch marks and all of that. And you'll see. It doesn't matter. I think they're gorgeous, Calliope."

"Next one, huh?" she asked.

"I said maybe," she said. "Let's get the first one out of diapers. Maybe into preschool. Then we'll talk."

"Okay."

"But I have to admit that one more kid as great as Sofia wouldn't be bad at all."

"Nope," Callie said.

"We'll see how it works out," Arizona replied, taking the massage oils from Callie. "But you wanna know what I think?"

"What?"

"I think we should stop all this baby talk and start doing something a little more adult," she smiled. "Again."

"I like the way you think," she said, as her fiance's warm skin ended up pressed close against hers one more time.

"I thought you might."


	12. Bad Day Back

**Hey guys! I'm sorry that it's been awhile since I've put a new chapter up. Now that I'm back from my vacation, things will be back to normal. Thanks for the patience and I hope that you enjoy this chapter. :)**

* * *

Callie and Arizona's little trip was just what they needed. They savoured every moment of it, and it gave them time to reconnect on a level that had nothing to do with being mommies. Yet, soon they were welcoming their roles once again. They couldn't be away from Sofia for too long, nor did they want to be. As soon as they returned, they were quickly back to the familiarity of their daily lives.

It seemed like before they knew it, their little one was turning eight months old. Luckily, her life had been very well documented, and today was no exception.

"Today is Sofia Robbin Sloan's first day of daycare!" Mommy announced, gliding backwards on her usual footwear as she recorded Callie pushing the stroller into the hospital's entrance. "What do you think, Baby?" she added.

"Are you happy that Mommy finally gets to come back to work?" Callie asked, looking down at the baby.

Sofia let out a tiny cry. She wasn't overly upset, but she wasn't exactly content.

"Oh, I know!" Arizona replied. "The stroller! How dare we make you sit back and relax while we give you a little ride! Does this mean you're sad I'm back to work and not home with you all of the time? I think it'll be okay."

"It will," Madre nodded. "These people know all about taking care of you, Sof. And Mommy gets to help other kids who need her too!"

Arizona bumped into someone, but was relieved when she turned to see that it was only Teddy; at least she hadn't rolled right into a patient or anything.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "Oops. You couldn't have told me she was there?"

"It's okay," Teddy said.

"I'm just trying to show you that those aren't for surgeons or for mommies," Callie teased.

"They're for everybody, right Sof?" Arizona smiled.

"At least we know you're fully recovered," Teddy pointed out. "Good to have you back here. And conscious."

"Yep!" she nodded.

Callie took Sofia out of the stroller and handed her over to Arizona. Sometimes she loved just to watch the two interact. There was nothing like watching both of the ladies who would always have a firm grip on her heart loving each other. To her, it was simply proof that they were meant to be a family. They had certainly had much more than their share of ups and downs, but they had battled all of the forces that threatened to keep them apart and built this family together. It seemed too good to be true, but Callie knew that it really was right.

"Are Mommy's shoes silly?" Teddy asked her niece. "What do you say, Sofia?"

She held out her arms to take the baby and Arizona handed her over, newly wet diaper and all.

"Tell Auntie Teddy it's her turn to change you," Mommy joked. "I changed two poopy diapers last night, Madre got a pretty soggy one this morning…"

"I say that makes it Daddy's turn!" Teddy smiled, making a face at Sofia. "Right? But it's not so bad. Just pee this time."

"Speaking of Mark," Callie said. "Where is he? He said he wanted to meet the daycare teachers. Do you know…?"

"A few burn victims came in about an hour ago," Teddy answered, kissing Sofia's little hand. "He's probably in the OR." Sofia cooed. "Would you like to be a surgeon when you're big? The OR's the place to be, isn't it?"

"He'll meet them later," Arizona said.

"I know," Callie agreed. "Let's go drop her off, Mom."

"Sounds good."

"Have a good day," Teddy said, sneaking one more baby kiss before handing the little girl back over.

"She will," Arizona replied, letting her lips meet Sofia's dark locks. "Even if Mommy's not exactly ready to leave her."

"She's much older than most babies in the daycare," Callie rationalized, even though she didn't love the idea very much either. "She'll be fine."

"I know."

"And you get to work again. It helps, I think. You'll miss her like crazy, but it gives you time to feel like a grown-up and get away from the diapers and the bottles for a bit."

"And I'll make the most of every minute I'm off."

"Definitely."

* * *

"This day is just _fantastic_!" Arizona said, letting a chart slam down against the nurse's station counter.

It was obvious that Arizona wasn't having a good day at all, though. Callie began rubbing her shoulder, hoping to calm down the Pediatric surgeon. After all, it wasn't even one o'clock. Arizona's day had better improve if she was going to get through it.

"What happened?"

Arizona's words exploded out of her mouth, forming a long, detailed – yet scattered – rant that documented her day so far. First, she had had to tell the parents of a six-year-old little boy that he was going to die because he simply didn't have enough time to wait for the new heart that he needed. He had been on the transplant list, but his match just hadn't happened and he appeared to only have about a day or two left to live. She had done this many times, but it was different now that she was a mom. She could truly sympathize with them on an entirely new level.

"Remember when you were an intern and you had to learn to stop letting the losses eat at you?" Callie asked, interrupting the speech for just a second.

"Yeah."

"You have to do that all over again," she said. "Those kids aren't Sofia."

"I know."

"But it's harder than it seems."

"Much."

"What else happened?" she asked.

"I went down to the daycare to cuddle with Sweet Girl and give her her bottle since I had time, and there's another girl who wasn't working there this morning. She gives me this look when I walk in and pick Sofia up, so I make a point of calling myself Mommy when I'm talking to Sof. Then she comes over and asks if I adopted her, because I guess Mark stopped by for a couple minutes and clearly that just doesn't add up since she hasn't met you and Sofia's _all _you."

"Okay…"

"I told her not officially, but…yeah. And I explained the situation."

"Right."

"Then she asked if I plan to adopt her," she said. "Which, I wish I had parental rights, but I don't see the point. She's just as much mine as she is yours or Mark's. Taking rights away from Mark won't make me feel any differently towards her. It would probably only make her wonder why I was trying to keep her dad away. To me, he's…Mark. But to her, he's her daddy and I don't want to be the one to put a wedge there. I've thought about it. Trust me. I hate the fact that if something happened to her –"

"If something happened to her and you weren't allowed to be with her, there'd be trouble," Callie promised. "And if it was medical, she'd be here and nobody here would keep you from her on purpose."

"I know," she said. "That makes me feel better."

"Good."

"Anyways, I just told her that. That I'd love if all three of us could have rights, but I don't want to make Sofia feel any resentment."

"Yeah."

"And she actually said 'So then you aren't her mom.'"

Callie kissed her fiancé. "You know you're her mom. Don't listen to her."

"I'm trying not to."

"DNA and the law only reach so far," Callie added. "The law won't even let us be married. Does that mean you won't be my wife?"

"No, I will."

"Exactly."

"And I am her mommy."

"You are."

"I just don't understand why a piece of paper would make my motherhood any more real. You're on her birth certificate. How often do people marvel at that?"

"Never."

And because I'm not, I'm what? Playing pretend?"

"What matters here?"

"Sofia."

"What you, me, and Sofia feel," Callie nodded. "And Mark, since we want all of her parents on the same page. But to Sof, you're the best thing alive."

"I am, huh?"

"For sure."

She smiled.

"Feel better?"

"A bit."

"Good," she said.

"You know what would help even more?" she asked.

"I've got a surgery in twenty minutes," she said. "I can't really meet you in the on-call –"

"Not that."

"What?"

"If you'd look at dresses with me."

Arizona had been hinting that she wanted to have Callie's opinion on her wedding dress, but the Ortho surgeon hadn't agreed yet.

"You pick the one you love," she said. "I'll love whatever you decide on. Go try a bunch on and whichever makes you feel the best…"

"I want you to love it, too."

"I love the bride who'll be wearing it," she told her. "I already love it and you don't even know which one it is."

"I think it would be fun to do the whole bridal shop thing together."

"I'll think about it," Callie said.

"It isn't traditional," Arizona replied. "I know. But we're both women. That's just a perk."

Callie laughed.

"Think about it," Arizona smiled, goosing her fiancé as she walked away.

* * *

Callie went to the daycare a few minutes before it was time to pick Sofia up so that she would get a chance to talk to the teachers about what had happened with Arizona that afternoon. She was hoping that this talk wouldn't get back to her fiancé because she didn't need it to become a bigger deal than it already was, but she felt like she had to take a stand to protect her soon-to-be wife.

"What are you doing here?" Mark, who would be the one taking Sofia home, asked. "Everything okay?"

"Just wanted to see her," Callie said, as she absentmindedly rubbed her hand down Sofia's hair. "And we had to clear something up."

"Oh."

"Everything's okay. She had a good day. Apparently, she loves dogs. One walked by outside and they said she cracked up over it."

"Was the puppy fun?" Mark smiled as Sofia reached out to him. "Daddy'll get you one when you're a bit bigger, okay? Right now, our landlord says 'no puppies!'"

Callie handed Sofia over. "Listen," she said. "Something happened today that got me thinking. This isn't the first time I've thought about it, but we've got to do something."

"About…?"

"If something happened to Sof, God forbid, I'm fairly confident that Arizona would be given access to her. She works here, so…"

"Yeah."

"But what if something happened to us?" Callie wondered aloud, gesturing to the space between her and Mark. "Arizona has no legal rights. If, again God forbid, we're not around to say that she needs to raise her, she might not get to. She might, since you don't have family and my mom's not going to take her in, - or at least not raise her to believe what I do about our life - but there's a chance that…"

"True."

"We should make wills," she said. "I know it's your life, but Arizona's her mom."

"I'll call my lawyer and have him draft a new one," he agreed. "I don't want Sof going to God knows who either."

"You already have a will?"

"You don't?" he asked. "I thought the whole coma thing would've gotten the ball rolling there."

"I haven't gotten around to it."

"I made one when I thought I'd be helping Sloan raise the baby. I wanted to make sure they were set if something happened to me, but I didn't want Sloan inheriting everything all at once. She was going to get money in increments. She couldn't afford to make stupid financial choices if she was going to have a baby to take care of."

"Not exactly."

"And she'll still get something, but I'll set Sofia up, too," he said. "And make sure Robbins is next of kin."

"Thank you."

"Anything else?"

"Do you really think it's bad luck for us to see each other's dresses before the wedding?"

Mark laughed. "You go from wills to that?"

"I was trying to cheer Arizona up, and that's kind of how our conversation went too," she explained.

"You and Robbins have had all the bad luck you're going to have, I think."

"That's what she said about getting ready together."

"Go with it, Torres."


	13. Making The Best Of It

**Hey! I've been asked if this story is going to be ending and the answer is not just yet. It will continue after the wedding (which is only a couple of chapters away!) for at least a few chapters. I will let you know if and when the end is near, but it isn't yet. I'm postive. :) **

* * *

"What do you think?" Arizona asked Sofia one morning just about a month later.

Sofia had started waking up earlier and earlier for some reason, probably because she was becoming so interested in independent play lately and she couldn't be bothered with boring things like sleep now. Her toys were much, much more exciting. Therefore, she sat on Mommy's lap eating cereal with one hand while she held one of her favourite stuffed buddies in the other; Arizona was flipping through a bridal magazine, since she and Callie had agreed to help choose each other's wedding gowns and the Latina had dog-eared a bunch of selections for her last night.

"Do we like this one?" she asked, catching Sofia's attention for just a second. "Is it nice, or no?

"Mama," the nine-month-old said.

She had been making the sounds for awhile now, but she wasn't really speaking since there had been no real connection there. She was just saying "Mama" without actually associating the word with Arizona. However, over these last couple of weeks, they were beginning to notice that she was actually starting to use the word appropriately.

"I am Mama!" Arizona praised. "Right! Who is this friend?" she asked, tapping Sofia's stuffed animal puppy on the nose. "Dog?"

"Dada," she said.

"Not Dada! Dada's at his apartment, Silly! You just like saying 'Dada', don't you? How about Madre?" she asked. "Are you gonna say that soon? You say 'Mama' to me, everything else is Dada, Dada, Dada, but no Madre yet, huh? Is that one a little tougher?"

"I'll just take that smile," Callie said, walking into the room and watching Sofia light up. "That's the one!" she said, taking the baby from Arizona. "My name might be tricky, but that smile's pretty easy to get out of you!" she said, tickling the baby.

Sofia reached out towards her cereal. "Uh!" she complained.

"Cereal, please!" Arizona replied, taking the little girl back so that breakfast time could continue.

Clearly, since Sofia only had one true word mastered, this phrase was far too much to ask of her. Still, they wanted to use the words she couldn't yet, hoping that she would catch on easier as a toddler if she was familiar with which words were used when.

"Are those yummy?" Callie asked, going into the fridge to get herself some orange juice.

Sofia reached her chubby little arm out to offer Madre some.

"No, thank you," she smiled. "Madre wants toast for breakfast."

Arizona flipped the page in her magazine, which was now covered in sticky baby fingerprints, and set her eyes on a dress that she thought would be perfect for her bride.

"Oh, Madre," she smiled. "You have to try on something like this when we go try on dresses."

Callie came over and looked after she started to toast some bread. She was less impressed with the look her fiancé loved.

"The bottom's pretty," she agreed. "But that top? I'd just be spilling out of it."

"True," she said. "But something similar would be gorgeous."

"What do you think about the ones I think would look good on you?"

"They all look like they belong to some Disney character," she said. "I don't do princessey."

"You wear roller skate shoes," Callie laughed. "But a ballgown is too much?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"I thought that's what you wanted."

"No."

"Oh."

"I want something simple, yet gorgeous."

She smiled. "Sounds good."

"And you, Miss Sofia…" Mommy said, kissing the little girl's head. "What should you wear?"

"Do you want to wear a pretty dress to the wedding, too?" Callie asked her. "Just like Mommy and Madre?"

"Do you know what our wedding means?" Arizona asked Sofia. "It means that we're going to tell you, and each other, and our friends and family that we love each other so, so much."

Sofia giggled.

"And you get to be a part of it!" Callie told her.

The baby gasped.

"Lucky you, huh? You get to be the flower girl."

"If we can convince you to hold flowers," Arizona said. "You might be better off just walkin'. You probably won't be too, too good on those little feet just yet."

"That's okay," Callie said. "You can just be Sofia then!"

"You know all about bein' a Sofia, right?" Arizona asked as her girl finished up the last of her cereal pieces. She looked up at Mommy. "All done!"

"We'll pack you one of those teething cookies for snack and some pureed carrots and peas for lunch today. How's that sound?" Callie asked.

"Can you eat the peas today?" Arizona wondered. "You like them, but a few days ago, you wouldn't eat 'em."

"Peas are good stuff," Callie said. "They'll make a good lunch."

Sofia looked at her with a confused look on her face.

"And then…" she continued. "You eat dinner with Daddy tonight so Mommy and I can go pick wedding' rings out."

"Yay!" Arizona exclaimed, clapping the little lady's hands together. "Madre and I get to look at pretty stuff and you get to hang out with Daddy. Is that a good plan?"

The baby girl smiled.

"I have an idea for our rings," Callie said. "A patient of mine yesterday had a 'family ring.' It had her birth stone, her husband's birth stone, and the birth stones of their kids. I thought that would be a cool idea for us. Since we want Sof included as much as possible."

"I like that," she smiled.

"And if we have more kids, we could add to them," Callie said.

"If," Arizona said, reminding her wife to be cautious when tossing around the idea of a second tiny human.

"You're the one that brought it up," Callie said. "At the B&B. It wasn't me."

"And you're the one who keeps bringing it up since," Arizona said. "I'm really, really happy with the three of us. Four of us isn't off limits, but it's not something I take lightly either."

"Me neither," Callie said. "We have to be ready. I know. And we're not right now. But one day, I think it would be nice."

"I want to enjoy her," Arizona smiled, looking down at Sofia's bedhead hair. "I had a little brother and he was awesome. I want that for her. But I also want her to get at least some time that she's able to remember of just the three of us. I think there's something so special about being the first child. Not that a second baby isn't just as special, but…"

"But you want to make sure she knows she's always going to be our little girl. Even if we have another little girl."

"Exactly."

* * *

Wedding ring shopping went great; they picked out the "family rings" that Callie had suggested, which they both thought would be perfect. After all, their marriage wasn't just about them. Sure, they were the couple, but Sofia was just as much a part of their union.

Their happy, wedding planning mood didn't last very long, though. When they returned home, Callie called her dad. She had forgotten to let him know that they had officially chosen a date – August twelfth – to get married, and she was sure he'd like to know about this latest part of the plans. Plus, Abuelo was always looking forward to an update on Sofia.

However, Callie never did get to have that happy conversation with her father. Her mother answered the phone and she tried once again to talk to her.

"I don't know why I bother," she told Arizona as she went around Sofia's room cleaning up some toys. The blocks were being tossed a little too forcefully into their container, but she couldn't help it. Sofia wasn't around to see and she had to get her frustration out somehow.

"I'm so, so sorry," her fiancé replied.

"I _know_ she's religious and she takes the Bible very seriously," she said. "I know. But so do I. I read the Bible all the time. Not quite as often as I used to because I'm a busy surgeon and a busy mom, but I still do it and I still take it seriously. Just like she does."

"I know."

"I just don't believe that God would really want people to use His word to hurt others."

"I know."

"I'm not saying I'm a perfect person. Of course I'm not. I've obviously done things that weren't great. Even things that God would be disappointed with. But I don't think that loving you or having Sofia are any of those things. You happen to be a woman and I'm not going to be with Mark. So what? God knows that what I feel for you is real and that I'm committed. I feel like that's all that matters. And a child is always a blessing. I believe that God gave us Sofia. Of course free will and all of that plays a role, but so does God. That's just how I feel in my heart. Why He gave her to all three of us, I don't know. But we all love her and we're doing the best we can to raise her to be the best person we can. That's our job as parents. It makes no sense to punish an innocent child because of her conception. I mean, I know it's still a sensitive subject for you, but even you love her – and me – anyway."

"Yep."

"I know that Sofia doesn't know the difference now, but still. She doesn't get an abuela because my mom can't look past that and just love the granddaughter she's been given. And I don't get to have my mom at my wedding, because…"

Arizona wrapped her arms around Callie and let her fiancé's tears fall on her shoulder. She had been so lucky to have her family accept her, and she really didn't know what to do or say. She wanted to fix this for Callie and for Sofia, but Mrs. Torres may never come around.

"I think we should go cuddle our girl," Arizona smiled, knowing that that would cheer Callie up. "And we'll make the best of our wedding. I wish your mom would come, but it can still be a great day. And Sofia's going to be fine. If her abuela comes around, great. If not, her grandma, grandpa, and abuelo love her so much. She's not going to feel the lack of love. She's going to know that the three grandparents she's got adore everything about her."

"I hope so."

"C'mon," Arizona said, taking Callie's arm and leading her across the hall, where she knocked on Mark's door.

"Yes?" Mark asked as he opened it.

"Would you mind if we took Sofia tonight?" Callie asked. "I know we said it was your night and she's been with us for the last three nights. I know. We weren't just trying to use you as a babysitter so we could go pick rings. But I talked to my mom and it didn't go well, so I'd really appreciate if I could just spend some time with her."

"Sure," he said.

They were trying to have some kind of schedule just so that everyone got enough time with Sofia, but it wasn't a strict plan at all. They lived so close to each other that plans were easily changed at times like these.

"Thanks," Callie said as she and Arizona walked in. "You can have her tomorrow night."

"I shouldn't be working Monday night," he said. "Maybe I could have her then, too?"

"Deal," Arizona nodded.

"Hi!" Callie said, as she sat down on the floor with Sofia, who was turning the pages in a picture book. "Can we take this book to Madre and Mommy's?"

Madre picked it up and Sofia let out a disapproving yell. She may have only been nine months old, but she was developing quite the personality. She knew what she liked and didn't like, and she was certainly able to tell her parents.

"Do you want to carry it?" Arizona asked. "Like a big girl?"

Callie handed the book over and Sofia seemed content with that. After Daddy gave her a quick kiss, she was off to Madre and Mommy's for the night.

"What's happening in this book, huh?" Callie asked as she sat down on the couch with her girls and let Sofia open it. "Is it about colours? What colour is this one? Red? Red's in Sofia's book and Mama's necklace is red. Look!"

Sofia looked up and motioned towards Mommy. Arizona's accessory was simply a plaything to the baby girl.

Callie handed her over. "Be gentle," she said, even though this wasn't going to happen.

"Is it pretty?" Arizona asked, as her daughter faced her eye to eye.

"Oooo!" Sofia shrieked.

Callie realized that Arizona was right. She may have been disappointed by her mom once again, but Sofia was making her feel much better. Really, all she needed to be happy was her little family. A relationship with her mom would be nice, but she was going to be okay even if that was never mended.

* * *

"What are you two doing in here?" Arizona asked, coming in the bathroom when she was finished cleaning up after her and Callie's dinner.

Sofia had started absolutely loving bath time recently, which made it one of the best times of the day and a great opportunity for a little built-in playtime. She loved splashing around in the water and playing with all the tub toys they had collected for her. The giggles were so easy to get out of her, and tonight she was howling with laugher as her madre shampooed her hair.

"Havin' fun," Callie smiled. "Huh, Sof?"

The little girl looked up and the giggles began once again. They loved that something so simple, something as necessary as a bath, could make their girl so happy.

"Who's this new friend?" Arizona asked of the new rubber duck that they had just bought for her. "Did you get a new duck to play with in the tub?"

"Plain old splashing is still her favourite," Callie said.

"Well, yeah!" Arizona smiled.

She was glad to see that Sofia had broken Callie out of the sadness she had been feeling from earlier today. After all, nobody could stay upset after hearing that sweet little laugh, could they?

"Bath time is supposed to be relaxing," Callie told Sofia. "What happened to that?"

"That's what cuddles are for," Arizona said.

Sofia may have been getting more and more interested in playing and activity these days, but she was also still a huge fan of her nightly cuddles. She wanted to be held just as much as always, and a story and some cuddles before bed could never, ever be skipped. They had tried because they didn't want their little girl to become unable to soothe herself to sleep if they were always doing it for her, but it hadn't worked. For now, they decided to continue with what worked, since Sofia was still little. Plus, they couldn't deny that they loved it.

Sofia yawned. It wasn't a real yawn, since she wasn't that tired yet, but she was mimicking what she would see her parents do when they were tired.

"Oh, Mommy says 'cuddles' and you know that means bed?" Madre asked.

Arizona kissed her. "You know what I think? I think we have the best Sofia Robbin Sloan there is."

"I think so, too," Callie nodded.

"Did you have a better night?"

"Definitely."

"Good," she smiled. "One hundred, twenty-seven more days."

Arizona had been counting down to the wedding date since they had officially set one. It was kind of like a child counting down to Christmas, only so much better.

"I can't wait," Callie replied. "Even if we _still_ need dresses."

"We'll find them," she reassured her as Sofia smiled. "Right? We'll find them and we'll have the best wedding you've ever been too!"

"Tell Mama it's the only wedding you've ever been to."

"Still!"


	14. A Year

The little girl made the sweetest suckling noises in her sleep. Her eyelids fluttered the tiniest bit, making her mommy wonder if she had disturbed her slumber. Thankfully, she hadn't. She continued to watch her baby sleep for a few more minutes until her fiancé snuck into the nursery as well.

"You're going to wake her up," Callie whispered, as she set eyes on their little one.

"No, I'm not," Arizona replied. "Okay, maybe I am, but I couldn't help myself. She's just so..."

"Perfect?"

Arizona nodded. "And huge," she added.

"That too," Callie agreed.

Today was July eighth. This was, of course, Sofia's first birthday. Just like any other parents, the two women were wondering where the time had gone. What happened to that tiny newborn they had met last year? Now she was officially walking, beginning to talk, eating most of the same things they did, and acting like a big person in a small body in so many other ways. They were feeling the need to slow time down so that they could savour every bit of the baby that was still inside of her.

However, this is not the only reason that today was a big day. Three hundred and sixty-five days ago today, Arizona had awoken from the coma that had once threatened to keep them from ever being this happy little family. Yet, no one would ever know it today based on how well Arizona's recovery has gone. Thanks to the best medical care Seattle Grace Mercy West had to offer, as well as plenty of hard work in various types of therapies, Arizona was finally back to nothing but her old self. The wedding was only about a month away - thirty-five days according to Arizona's countdown - and they couldn't help but be reminded of how far away they were from where they had been just a year ago.

Today had nothing to do with MRIs, neurological functions, or therapies. No, today they were throwing the birthday party that Callie once thought Arizona may never get to see. Sure, nothing could top the joyful adrenaline rush that they felt last year, but they were going all out anyway. Arizona may not have liked to celebrate _her_ birthdays, but Sofia's were different story.

"She's technically a _toddler_," Arizona said, as if the concept for absolute certain.

"Shh…" Callie said. "Don't use words like that."

Sofia's eyes fluttered open this time. She let out a displeased noise as she rubbed her big brown eyes with her chubby fists. Once she took notice of her mothers however, the little lady was all smiles.

"Good morning! "Arizona smiled in response. "Happy birthday!"

"You're such a big girl!" Callie added, as Arizona lifted her out of the crib.

"With such a messy diaper!" the blonde noticed. She kissed her. "We've talked about this. You're supposed to save the _really _stinky poops for Daddy, or at least Madre."

"Nice try, Mommy," Callie laughed. "I'm going to go make her her special birthday breakfast while you change her. "

She gave them each a kiss before leaving the room.

"Mama?" Sofia asked as Arizona changed her.

"Yes?"

"Mama?"she repeated.

"Do you just like to say my name?" she asked. "How about Madre? Can you say her name?"

"Ma'" she said, not completely able to pronounce the whole thing, but close enough for a twelve-month-old.

"Right."

"She's makin' you a waffle for breakfast!" she told her. "And Grandma, Grandpa, Abuelo, and Daddy are coming to eat your birthday breakfast with you."

"Yeah?"

"Yep!" she answered. "And then you get a party with your friends! Well, our friends, but they're your friends, too. Right?"

She giggled.

"You're such a happy girl this morning!" Mommy told her as she finished the diaper change.

"Yeah?"

"Yep! You are!"

She brought her out into the main living area and watched as the little ones eyes grew wide. Her party decorations had gone up last night after she was asleep, so she was just seeing them now. The small apartment was filled with pretty things – probably too many pretty things for a first birthday party – and she was in awe.

"Are we ready for a birthday party in here?" Callie asked. "What do you think? Is it special just for you?"

Just then, Arizona's parents arrived for the day. They had been there for a few already, but the two bedroom apartment was just too small for them to be able to sleep there, so they had to sleep in a hotel. They didn't mind very much, though. It was worth it to be able to spend time with Arizona, Sofia, and Callie.

"Happy birthday!" Grandma smiled, taking Sofia from her daughter.

"I see you weren't kidding when you said you had to decorate," Arizona's father said, looking around at all the pink and white decorations.

"She only turns one once!" his wife replied.

"We couldn't help it," Callie said. "We got carried away. Just a little bit."

"I'm just surprised it's so pink," Arizona's mom said.

"Mommy won this year," Callie explained. "Next year, Daddy and I get our way. Which is a little less…well…pink."

"She's a girl and she can't exactly tell us what her favourite colour is," Mommy defended. "It works. I could've gone with the chickens theme and had feathers everywhere."

"True. Okay, I'll stop."

Arizona kissed her. "Good."

"Ready for that waffle, Sof?" Callie asked, bringing it over to the highchair.

"Mmmm…!" the little one smiled.

She clearly enjoyed her birthday breakfast, since it was almost gone by the time Daddy arrived.

"Take a breath, Sof," Arizona smiled, pulling the little girl's plate out of her reach for just a minute. "I'm happy you like it, but chewing is okay, too. Choking wouldn't be so great."

"Well, happy birthday!" Mark laughed. "I take it you're a little excitable today?"

"Wait until Abuelo gets here and you see the cake he insisted we order for you," Callie said. "He's picking it up and it's got_ way_ too much chocolate for your first cake ever."

She laughed.

"Is it just me or does she seem so much older than she did yesterday?" Mark asked.

"She does," Arizona agreed.

"Our baby isn't actually a baby anymore," Callie added.

"Do not use her birthday to talk me into another one," Arizona said. "Wedding first. Then honeymoon. Then we'll start talking about some actual plans."

"There are actual plans?!" Arizona's mom asked.

"What did I just say?" she asked.

"Fine," Grandma smiled. "We can be patient, right Sofia?"

"I just think that we should keep the ball rolling," Callie said. "I mean, last year at this time, things were looking pretty bad. Sof was coming, which was good, but you were in a coma still. Then I had her, you woke up, you made a full recovery, we got engaged...again, and in a month, we'll be married."

"And it's been wonderful," she smiled. "But can we take it easy on the milestones for a bit and just be a happy family? Just us."

Arizona had a point. That didn't mean that the baby fever wouldn't keep creeping in, but there was no reason to rush. Yes, there was going to be more involved in trying for a second child then there would be for most couples. It would take longer, which was probably why Callie was thinking about it already. Still, nobody was going anywhere. They had decided that a baby number two would come one day, but for now, they should just be enjoying all the time that they could with baby number one.

"Sounds good to me," she said. "What should we do after breakfast, Baby Girl?"

* * *

"I think it's safe to say she loves birthday parties," Arizona smiled as she and her wife enjoyed the final servings of the ice cream they had served at the party that night.

They had just now managed to settle her down to sleep, even though she was exhausted, because she kept asking for a balloon – or "oo" as she called it – and refusing to close her eyes again until she had one. Clearly, it wasn't safe to give in to this request, but after she asked for the fifth time, they had convinced her that a blanket with balloons on it would work.

"Just a little bit," Callie laughed.

"I spent last year in a hospital bed," she said. "This year, I spent it trying to stop her from tearing down all of the decorations we put at her level. Which, by the way, what were we thinking doing that?"

"I wanted her to see them up close," she explained. "But yeah. It's crazy how much things can change in a year's time. Three hundred and sixty-five days doesn't seem like very many, but…"

"And in thirty-five more, I'm going to be your wife," she smiled, giving her a kiss.

"I know we wish time would slow down, but I hope that it speeds up just a little bit over the next month."

"Me too, Dr. Torres," she smiled. "Me too."

"And we can definitely get Sof to walk down the aisle as our flower girl if we tell her she'll get wedding cake later."

She laughed. "Yep."

"She's so smart," Callie said. "I swear she almost said 'Grandpa Robbins' to your dad today."

"Clearly?" she asked. "Doubtful. A balloon is 'oo.'"

"I heard it," she insisted. "She may have been babbling, but it was just like Grandpa Robbins."

"Okay," she smiled, even if this wasn't possibly what Callie heard. "Our baby is a genius."

"Our _toddler_."

* * *

**Yes, I've been slacking on this story. However, there will be a wedding chapter up by Saturday. I swear it. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. **


	15. The Wedding Day

"What are you doin'?" Callie asked as Sofia turned the TV on and sat down right in front of it to watch whatever came on. "I don't think so, Sof. You're too little for T.V. and _definitely_ too little to be helping yourself to it," she explained as she turned it back off.

"Yeah?"

"Yes. Come on, Sof. I made Mommy a special wedding day breakfast," she said, heading towards her bedroom, but waiting for the thirteen month old to follow on her tiny little legs. "Let's surprise her."

"Mama?" she asked as she followed.

"Yep," Callie nodded. "We're getting married today!" she whispered.

Her soon-to-be wife stirred as their daughter's little voice babbled some nonsensical sounds. A smile spread across Arizona's face right away. This was the perfect way to begin her wedding day. It wasn't all that different from most – except for the fact that breakfast was going to be in bed, not at the table – so far, yet it felt so important. This was it. By the end of the day, Calliope Iphigenia Torres would be her wife. Of course, nothing about the way they lived would really be different, but the title sounded so amazing.

"You made breakfast for me?" she asked as Callie placed the tray down.

"I did," Callie nodded, getting back into their bed and giving her a kiss. "It's our wedding day."

"It's awesome," Arizona replied. "I can't wait to be your wife."

"Uh!" Sofia said, trying to let her mommies know that she wanted up, too.

"Sorry!" Callie said as she got out of the bed again to pick her up and then sat back down in it with her. "I was just givin' Mama a kiss first."

Sofia opened her mouth. She hadn't learned how to give closed-mouth kisses yet, but she loved to share her wet, open-mouthed smooches. Arizona leaned in to receive hers. "Good morning, Flower Baby!"

"Family kiss," Callie suggested. "Ready?"

Sofia was giggling even before the kiss attack began. "One, two, three!" Arizona counted, before she and Callie both covered their toddler in kisses and tickles.

"Are we gonna have fun today?" Callie asked her. "You're gonna walk down the aisle for us, right?"

They knew that this might not work out since she was so young, but they did hope that she would decide to. They had opted not to have much of a wedding party, but they had told her that she could choose to walk down with anyone she wanted, aside from their dads who they would be with. Still, if she chose no one and wouldn't go, they were just going to go with it. They didn't want to force her to do it if she would rather just sit – or play – and watch.

"With who?" Callie asked. "Mommy and I are going with our daddies. Who should walk you down the aisle?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you not sure? We'll pick later, okay? Grandma, Daddy, and Auntie Teddy all volunteered."

They knew their girl wasn't likely to choose anyone else anyway.

"You get to put your pretty dress on again," Arizona told her as she took a sip of her coffee.

Sofia had tried it on a few days ago just to make sure it still fit her well and she didn't want to take it off. They had to promise her that they would let her wear it again soon in order for her to finally part with it.

She reached for a piece of toast off of the tray and a mess of crumbs made its way onto the bed as she took a bite.

"Messy, huh?" Callie asked as they watched her survey the damage. "It's okay. We'll clean up later."

"Mmm!" she smiled.

"Does it taste good?" Arizona wondered. "Guess what else you get today? Wedding cake!"

The blonde's eyes met with Callie's and they were very obviously sharing the same thought. How did they get so lucky? They would really get to spend the rest of their lives like this?

* * *

"One changed flower girl," Mark said, handing Sofia back over to Callie just moments before the wedding was to begin.

Sofia had needed a change, but everyone was busy getting the final touches done before the ladies walked down the aisle, so Callie had texted Mark to ask if he could help out.

"Thanks," she smiled.

"You ready?"

"Definitely," she nodded.

She had been expecting to feel some nerves even though she was excited. Many people had told her that they would come. Yet, they hadn't. She simply felt excitement and she could tell that it was the same for her bride. They didn't care if nothing went as planned, as long as they ended up married by the end of it all.

"The minister's ready," Arizona's dad came over and announced.

"Finally," Arizona replied.

"We're ahead of schedule, actually," he told her. "By ten minutes."

"I've waited years to marry Calliope," she smiled. "Finally is right."

Callie put their daughter down. "Let's get this thing started, right Sof?"

"Yeah," Sofia smiled as she started to sit down in the grass.

"No, no, no," Mark replied, picking her up. "Don't get dirty before all of those pictures."

"It's fine," Arizona said. "We don't really plan to put her in the dress again and if she gets messy for pictures that's…her in the moment. "

As it was, their photographer had been taking pictures all morning, so they would have plenty of good ones anyway.

"Are you ready, Sofia?" Grandma asked.

"Who do you want to walk with?" Callie wondered.

"Mama," she answered.

Callie looked over at Arizona. Having their fathers give them away had always been important to both of them. They had never even considered anything else. It was also traditional, which was important to her. She may have been marrying a woman, but she still wanted as much tradition as possible at this wedding.

"What do you think, Mommy?"

"Okay," Arizona said.

She and Callie would get their father/daughter dances. Their dads would be included without a doubt. Sofia, whether she realized it or not, had a pretty sweet idea, actually. What better way to make this wedding about the three of them like they had always wanted to?

"Both of us?" she added. "If you want, your dad can still…I just thought this might be special, too."

"What do you think?" Callie asked both of their fathers.

Carlos kissed his daughter's cheek. "Go ahead," she said. "If I'm not giving you away, I can't think of anybody better suited to."

Arizona kissed her dad before Mark handed her their little girl. "You get two special jobs now!"

"Ready, Sofia?" Callie asked as her future wife put Sofia down.

The thirteen-month-old walked her mommies down the aisle like it was no big deal, even waving to her abuelo on the way.

"Keep goin'," Arizona whispered. "All the way up to those flowers and the minister up there," she pointed.

"Hi," the minister smiled when the little one and her mothers reached him. "You did a good job!"

Arizona picked her up. "You wanna stay here with us or go sit there with everybody?"

"She's fine," Callie smiled. "Let's do this."

Sofia spent the ceremony in Mommy's arms, interjecting every now and then with a giggle or a few word-like sounds. No one cared; it was cute and she was enjoying herself.

"…I love you," Arizona added after her traditional vows. "And you look stunning Calliope Torres."

"Yeah," Sofia said.

"She agrees," Arizona replied.

"Thanks," Callie laughed.

"I now pronounce you wives. You may kiss your bride," the minister told them both.

Sofia started clapping as everyone else did, putting her hands in the way.

"Yay!" Callie smiled. "We're married now! Can I give Mommy a kiss, please?"

Callie leaned in and kissed her. The ceremony may not have gone exactly as planned, but it went better. The whole family enjoyed it, which was the best part. Arizona kissed Sofia and it turned into a second family kiss of the day. Sofia touched her cheek and noticed that Madre had left red stuff behind.

"Did I get lipstick on you?" Callie asked. "Mommy probably got the other side."

"Yep!" Arizona smiled.

* * *

If Sofia thought the ceremony was fun, she quickly realized that the reception was so much better. The tiny lady wanted to dance with everyone and she was quickly stealing the show. After four dances in a row with her moms, Daddy took over to give them a chance to have their first dance without a toddler at their ankles. Now, she was back again.

"Did you dance with Daddy?" Mommy asked. "And…everybody? You've danced with us a lot, with Bailey, Auntie Teddy, Uncle Derek…even Alex!"

"You're gonna sleep good for Dad tonight," Callie added.

"Oh, yeah," Arizona's mom agreed.

"Wanna dance with me?" Grandpa questioned. "In a minute, I dance with Mommy, but I've gotta get in a dance with you, don't I?"

Callie watched as her father-in-law and daughter "danced." Sofia still wasn't too stable on her little feet, so her grandpa had to hold her stable as she wiggled and bobbed up and down to the music.

She gave her wife a kiss. "I didn't know one day could be this awesome."

"Awesome?" she smiled. "I'm converting you."

"Not quite," she laughed. "But yes. Awesome."

"Super awesome."


	16. Such A Great Future

The wedding and honeymoon were great; in fact, even though they were back to their normal lives now, the two ladies still couldn't keep their hands off of each other. Nothing had actually changed in the five months since before they were married, but there was something about being newlyweds that made them unable to resist each other. It was probably much more fun because, with a toddler around, they kind of had to sneak around like teenagers sometimes as well, hoping she wouldn't wake up too, too soon.

No such luck today.

Callie was working her way up her wife's bare body, leaving a trail of passionate kisses to excite her, as Arizona heard it.

"Did you -?"

"Shh…," she replied. "Only sexy ta-"

She tried to push it out of her mind. After all, this was far too enjoyable to stop before they actually had to. She let out a soft moan as her wife continued.

Then she heard something else. The sound of tiny hands smacking against the door. Callie heard it, too, since she had just pulled away.

"What the -?" she asked.

"I think she got out of the crib," Arizona said, rolling over to find her bra. "Where are my pants?"

"She's going to Mark's tonight."

"Yep," Arizona nodded, sitting up and putting on her bra and shirt, but still unable to find her pants. "Where are my pants?" she asked again.

"Over there," Callie answered as she got dressed as well.

"Maday!" Sofia's little voice called out, mispronouncing "Madre."

"One minute, Sofia!" Callie called back, hoping this would quiet the frustration coming from the little girl's room.

"Mama!"

"We're coming, Big Girl!" she said, pulling on her pants. "I feel dirty."

"We're two married women having sex in our bedroom," Callie said. "Apparently she can get out of her crib now. Her door isn't open. It's not like she walked in on us."

"What if she heard us?"

Callie cringed, but offered up an explanation.

"She's too young to know what sex is."

"Excellent point," she smiled, coming back over to give her wife one more kiss before she left the room.

Callie followed after her to see her open Sofia's bedroom door slowly, careful not to knock her over if she was still standing behind it. She had moved on and was now turning on a musical toy that she had just received for Christmas.

"We're in trouble," Callie told her wife.

"I know," she said.

"Hi!" Sofia smiled up at them. "Pay, Mama?"

"Hi, Sof," she replied. "Did you get out of your crib all by yourself?"

"Yay!" she clapped for herself. "Pay, Maday?"

She saw no problem with the fact that she had just forced them out of bed. So what if they weren't ready to begin their days? She wanted to play.

"You're too smart for your own good," she said.

"Yeah," she agreed. "Yay!"

"And so humble," Arizona laughed as she went into the room and picked her up. "Is it time for a big girl bed?"

"No," she refused.

"I think so!"

"Again?" Callie asked as she walked into the Attending lounge later.

Arizona had just paged her for the third time that day. The other two had resulted in trips to the on-call room to continue what hadn't been finished that morning.

"No," she said, smiling. "We've got to save _something_ for tonight."

"Then what?" she asked, trying not to get too excited now.

"Sit," she told her, gesturing to the chair beside her. "I found the tiny Torres a toddler bed," she said, pulling up the page on her laptop.

"Okay," she nodded as she took a seat and had a look. "We'll go pick it up later this week. I like it, but she's with Mark for the next few nights, so there's no rush."

"I know, but I had some time, so I thought I'd take a look," she said, pulling up a second webpage. "And then I found this."

"Oh, Arizona…" Callie smiled.

Up on the screen was a real estate listing for a house in a neighbourhood not too far from where they lived now. It was three bedrooms, with a yard and just about everything else Callie had been not so subtly hinting at for the last month and a half.

The couple's first months of married life had been absolutely perfect. They still were, but now Callie was getting antsy again. They had talked about expanding the family, but both had decided that right now wasn't the time. However, they did want to get settled into a bigger house sooner rather than later. Arizona had moved a lot growing up, and she wanted Sofia to get to spend the majority of her life in one house that was big enough to grow with her and any potential siblings. She was now eighteen months old and it just seemed like the right time to start thinking about this step. Of course, she would also live with Mark, but they still wanted to give her a house.

"The master bathroom even has two sinks so we could both get ready at the same time," she said. "Look at all the space compared to the apartment."

"Is the yard fenced in?" she asked.

"Of course," she nodded. "I'd never even think about a house that didn't have a fenced yard. We can't even keep Sofia in her crib."

She laughed.

"Plus, we could finally get a dog."

"And some chickens?" she smiled.

"Sadly, I don't think this area is zoned for chickens," she said.

"Too bad," she laughed.

"But other than that, this is perfect. Not too pricey, either."

"Are we seriously going to try and get this house?" Callie asked. "Just like that?"

"I think so."

"Why so suddenly?" she asked.

"Suddenly? Calliope, you've been –"

What she meant to ask was why Arizona seemed to care so much today. She knew that she had been ready to move for a while, but she figured that her wife just wasn't there yet. She assumed it had something to do with the baby thing. Maybe Arizona thought that Callie would want a second child right after they moved into a larger place.

"I know that."

In reality, Arizona had realized something today. It hadn't hit her just how much their daughter was growing until she was able to successfully escape the confines of her crib. That showed her that maybe this was a time for change. If they didn't want Sofia to be too old before they bought their "forever home" maybe now was the time.

"It's just time," she said.

"Good."

"But not for more babies," she clarified.

"The more you talk about babies, the more I want one," Callie pointed out. "But I know you aren't ready yet and I love our lives the way they are right now."

"You mean that?"

"Yeah," she said. "More kids will happen. You'll get there. But last time, you had to get there _really _fast. This time, we'll go through all the steps first. Step one would be moving."

"What's step two?"

"You tell me."

"All this agreement is going to make tonight so much fun," she smiled.

"We have chocolate sauce and whipped cream in our fridge, you know."

"I like the way you think, Dr. Torres."

* * *

Arizona hadn't expected to wake up in an empty bed that night. She and Callie had had a great night, but she half-expected it to just keep continuing whenever they woke back up.

"Calliope…?"

"I'm out here," she said softly.

The blonde went out into the main living area to find her wife sitting and staring into Sofia's bedroom. She was over at Mark's, so she wasn't in it, but Callie was still just staring.

"What are you -?"

"I shouldn't be so excited about that house," she said. "We might not even get it. We haven't even seen it in person. Who knows if it's really what we want? But I can't stop thinking about it. About that yard especially. I can't wait to give her a yard. She'll love it."

Arizona smiled. "She will."

"But at the same time, it's just hitting me that we'd be packing up her whole babyhood."

"Take it from someone who moved a whole bunch as a kid," Arizona said. "We'll make new memories at a new house. And Sofia's not going to have to adjust to leaving schools and friends behind. It might be a bit of a weird adjustment for a while just because she'll still come here because Mark's across the hall, but she'll love having a house. Her room will be double the size it is now. What kid wouldn't love that?"

"You're right. Sometimes I just look at her and wonder where our little baby went. And how you and I, after all we've been through…how we ended up here? Talking about such a great future," she smiled.

"Because we're awesome."

She laughed.

* * *

Unfortunately, by the time they got a chance to look into that house, another offer had already been accepted. However, it least they knew what they wanted and that they were ready to look for it now.

"Sofia, do you want to live in a big house one day?" Arizona asked as they played with a little dollhouse set that Grandma Robbins had insisted her granddaughter just had to receive for Christmas.

She wasn't quite into pretend play just yet, but she did like to look at all of the pieces, take them in and out, and put them back in whatever order she decided they should go. For now, she found this entertaining enough.

"Yeah," she nodded.

Callie noticed that there was a toilet in the little bedroom of Sofia's house. She had put it there.

"Are you going to have a toilet in your room?"

"No," she said, shaking her head.

"Is that how you feel about potty training, too?" Arizona asked.

"Yeah."

"I see," she laughed. "When we move to a big house, you'll have more room in your room to put toys, Big Girl!"

Sofia looked into the tiny bedroom of her pretend house. They could tell she was trying to make sense of what Mommy had just told her. She went and got a stuffed animal and tried to fit it into the tiny space that gave her access to the doll house bedroom.

"Our house will be bigger than this one," Arizona explained as a puzzled looked came over her face.

She was at the age where she was trying to make sense of things like this and she was clearly confused. Callie held up one of the dollhouse people to show her the size difference.

"Look how little this person is," she said. "We're bigger than them, aren't we?"

"Baby," she smiled.

"Even babies are bigger than them!" she told her. "We're going to find a big people-sized house."

"Yeah."

"Can you say 'house?'" Arizona asked. "We're going to buy Sofia and Mommy and Madre a house. Soon, we hope."

"Soon?"

"Maybe. We'll have to see!"


	17. The Move

Callie walked into the apartment to find the main living area filled with open boxes. The intension was to be filling them with all of the things that they could live without for the next few days, since they were getting the keys to their new house on March tenth, but that was not exactly what Callie saw.

Instead, Sofia – who was now almost twenty months old – was having fun playing with all of the boxes. Some of them were tipped on their sides for her to crawl into and "hide" from Mommy, while some were still upright for standing in.

Arizona was having just as much fun with this little activity as their daughter was. Callie had always known that Arizona was good with children, but sometimes watching both of the most important pieces of her heart giggling at each other still gave her a sort of butterfly-like feeling. It was like her girls were made to be each other's best friends or something. Sofia thought Mommy made the world go 'round and vice versa. Anyone could tell when they watched them together and it only became more and more obvious as Sofia got older and older.

"We're going to pack you up and put you on the truck, too?" Callie teased.

"Yeah!" she nodded.

Callie noticed a collection of pots and pans on the kitchen floor as she went in to get herself a glass of water.

"Did any packing actually happen?" she laughed.

"We started with the kitchen, but that just turned into a little jam session slash dance party with the pots and pans," her wife said. "And the boxes out here are just too fun, but yes. Mark came to tell me that he _can_ take her every night until the move and they played for a bit while I packed up most of Miss Sofia's room. I just didn't want to until I knew that he was available all of the nights. I mean, she'll still spend days here, but she needs a place to sleep."

"No," Sofia disagreed.

"You don't?" Arizona asked, lifting her into another box. "Are you our little Energizer Bunny baby?"

"Some days it feels like it, huh?" Callie asked, going over and lifting the tiny girl out of the box. "Sofia, guess what? Apparently last night was your last night sleepin' in the first apartment you ever slept in. Soon we move to our new house!"

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Yep!" she nodded. "Daddy'll still live here, so you'll still live in his apartment, but not this one. We'll have a house now."

"Yay!"

"So exciting, huh?"

"Go?"

"Oh, you wanna go to our new house?" Arizona asked. "We can't yet. Other people live there for a few more days."

"Oh."

* * *

Sofia didn't get to go to her new house until four days after they got the keys. Her moms wanted to make sure it was at least somewhat ready for her before she came. The familiarity of seeing all of her things around would help, they figured. Due to the fact that they co-parented with Mark, having another place for her to stay while they unpacked and painted was simple. They took advantage of the time to work and created a space that they knew their toddler would love.

The doorbell rang three times in a row - no doubt because little fingers were ringing it - and they knew exactly who was at the door. Both of them went to answer it, equally excited to see the joy on their daughter's face as she explored her new surroundings.

"Hi!" Arizona smiled as she opened the door. "Welcome home, Sof!"

"Home?"

"This is Sofia's new house," Callie said, picking her up and giving her a kiss. "Remember we told you that you were staying at Daddy's so that we could unpack and get it all ready for you?"

"Yep," she nodded, looking around. "Pity!"

Mark laughed. "Well, the entryway is a hit," Mark smiled.

"Would you like to go see your new room?" Arizona asked her.

"Yeah," she said. "Pease?"

"You asked so nicely!" Callie said, giving her another kiss. "Of course we can go see your room! It's yours!"

"I have to go to work, Sof," Mark replied. "Can I have a kiss before you go see your room?"

She smiled and blew him a kiss. There had been a lot of talk of this pretty big girl room and it was about time she saw it already.

Arizona laughed. "You had to make it quick, huh?" she asked. "Say 'bye, Daddy!'"

"Buh bye," she said.

"Bye," he replied. "Have fun in your new room, okay? Tell me all about it the next time you see me."

"Yep," she nodded.

As Daddy left, they headed up to Sofia's new bedroom. She gasped with utter delight as she saw the pale yellow wall colour – which Callie had agreed to because it at least wasn't the typical pink or purple – and the various pieces of her colourful artwork framed on the walls.

"Pities!" she said, pointing to them.

"You coloured those, Baby," Callie told her.

"Yeah?"

"You did!" Arizona smiled. "And they were so gorgeous that we saved them for your new room."

They let her explore the space. Of course, the overwhelming majority of the toys were the exact same ones that she had been playing with for a while now, but she didn't seem to notice that. To her, most of the stuff in this new place seemed new.

"Baby..." she said as she opened her toy box and started to empty toys out of it. "Mo' baby..."

"A baby and more babies?" Arizona asked.

"Yep," she said, pulling a frog stuffed animal out as well, just to toss it behind her. "That..."

"The frog," Callie said, picking it up. "Can you say 'frog?'"

"Gog," she replied.

"Close! Frog."

Sofia took it from Madre and put it away.

"What?" Mommy laughed. "If you put it away, you don't have to practice how you say it?"

"Kitty..." she replied, removing a little grey cat stuffed animal this time.

"Can we not empty the whole box, please?" Arizona asked. "Sof, guess what?"

"Huh?"

"Yes, Mommy?" she corrected.

"Yeah?"

"Those are the same toys as you had before."

"No," she shook her head.

"Yes!"

She looked at one of the dolls and suddenly it was like she had just run into an old friend. "Sof!"

"She is yours, Silly Lady!" Arizona tickled her. "Do you think everything is new at the new house? Maybe if you looked at the toys before you tossed them over, you'd see that!"

She giggled.

"Look how much more room you have to play with your toys, Sofia," Callie told her. "It's a lot bigger than your old room, huh? Or your room at Daddy's?"

"Big!" she nodded.

They decided not to say much else and just to go back to letting Sofia explore. They had expected her to like her new room, but they hadn't expected her reaction to be as over the top as it was. Arizona even grabbed the video camera to capture some of it. They joked that it would probably just be shown at her wedding to annoy her, but still. It was adorable.

She started to climb up onto the bed and Callie gave her a boost.

"Maday!" she smiled.

"What?"

"Sof bed!" she told her as she started to realize that the furniture was the same.

Your bed is here?" she asked. "Well, how'd that happen?"

"Is it just as comfy here?" Arizona questioned. "Even with that new comforter on it?"

"Yep."

"Good," Callie nodded.

She stood up and began to bounce on the bed. Typically, they didn't like to encourage this. Sofia often lost focus of what she was really doing and they didn't want her to attempt this without supervision and get hurt one day. Also, they knew that they couldn't make her toddler bed _too _fun or she would never go to sleep easily. However, today they decided to have fun.

"Jump!" Arizona told her. "How high can you jump, Big Girl?"

"Whoa!" she giggled.

"You jumped so high!" Callie told her. "Keep jumping so that you can have a big nap later, okay? We still have to set up our new office."

"You actually _want_ to get that all settled?" Arizona asked. "Not just throw a desk in there?"

"Yeah. What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on," she said. "Every time we would walk through here before closing, you were picturing where we'd have room for a crib. Don't even try to –"

Maybe Arizona was right. Maybe Callie did want to turn that into a nursery one day. That day just wasn't right now. She had told her wife that she could wait until she was sure that she wanted the same thing, and she meant it. Rushing Arizona to make that choice wouldn't help anyone.

"And it'll make a great office, too. We need somewhere quiet to think sometimes with this little one around."

"So it's a baby-free zone?"

Callie laughed. Had Arizona met their daughter? That would never truly happen.

"In theory," she replied.

"Yeah," Arizona chuckled. "Sof, are you gonna let us work in our office?"

"No!" Sofia replied. "Pay!"

"No, we have to play?" she asked. "Okay. Maybe only the toys that don't sing the songs or talk can play in the office. Deal?"

"Say 'deal, Mommy!'" Callie told Sofia.

"Up!" Sofia exclaimed as she kept jumping.

"That's gonna be a long nap today, I think!" Arizona replied.

"Does that mean Madre and Mommy get some fun?" Callie asked.

"What happened to setting up the office?"

"We haven't had an office since we've lived together," she smiled. "Why the rush?"

* * *

The office wasn't complete for a few days. Madre got her wish when Sofia went down for a nap that day, and the next, and the next. Finally Arizona got fed up with seeing all of the boxes and pieces of unassembled furnishings, and they got down to work.

"How's it going, Mama?" Callie asked as she carried in a still slightly sleepy Sofia. "Apparently somebody's naptime is over."

"Is it, huh?" Arizona asked, giving Sofia and Callie each a kiss. "Madre, I can't find the rest of the books. Mine are all here, but about eight or nine of yours are missing. I know I packed all of them, but I don't –"

"The baby ones?" she asked. "The pregnancy books, and the name books, and the 'Baby's First Year' ones?"

"Yeah," she said. "How'd you know?"

"I saw them in the boxes you'd packed and I tossed them."

"What?"

"We don't need them right now," she said. "We can get new ones when we're at that point. If I keep them, I'm just going to start thumbing through them and before we know it, I'll have three kids named for us."

"Three?"

"Well, I mean...I'd leave you options," she joked.

She laughed. "Did you really throw away your books though?"

"I really did."

"You'll really wait."

"Obviously," she smiled. "You'll get there. We both know it. If you're not there yet, I'm serious that I'll wait."

"And the baby fever won't kill you?"

"I don't think baby fever is a true cause of death," she said, giving her a kiss.

"I love you," Arizona smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"When I tell you I'm ready, you're going to go buy every baby book you can, aren't you?" she realized.

"I might," she said. "I can't promise that I won't."

* * *

**Now that life has settled down some more, I'll be able to have another chapter up within the week! **


	18. A Decision

The alarm woke Arizona on the last day of April. Usually, with a toddler in the house, this never happened. They set the alarm as a technicality, but they never truly needed it. The requests of the tiny human were the only alarm that they really awoke to. That was not the case today. It had not been the case all week long.

Her wife came into the room just as she hit the snooze button.

"No more snooze," she said, giving her a kiss.

"His birthday is tomorrow," she replied. "I hate this week."

"I know," Callie said. "But no more snooze. Your brother wouldn't want you to stay in bed all day. He'd want you to get up and go save a bunch of kids. You're good at that and, when you take care of those kids, it makes you happy. That's what he'd want."

She smiled, not enough for there to be any real happiness there, but she still smiled. Happiness couldn't come today, but her wife was right. Her brother would want her to at least try to make today a good one. Her grief, even if she was in a much better place with it at this point, would never go away. She would miss her brother no matter what. Birthdays and holidays were especially tough, but she couldn't just give in to the grief. That wouldn't help and it wasn't for the best.

"Yeah," she agreed. "Where's Sofia?"

"Watching a DVD," she answered. "She's good. I thought her mommy needed me a little more this morning."

She kissed her. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Arizona got out of bed and put on her robe. She had to take a shower, but she had something else to do first. This, this would help her start the day. She went into the kitchen and poured some cereal into a big bowl before bringing it into the living room where Sofia was.

"Good morning!" she said.

Sofia reached into the bowl. Her chubby little fingers – which were losing some of their glorious chubbiness as she started to look less like a baby and more like a little lady – scooped up some of the breakfast food. She stopped and looked up at her mom. She rarely got to watch the television and she never ate in front of it. Even though she wasn't yet two, she knew this rule.

"Go ahead," she told her, pressing a kiss unto the top of her head. "This is breakfast."

"Are we going to have a good day?" Callie asked.

"We are," Arizona said. "I've decided."

"Well, good."

"Hi, Mama," Sofia smiled.

"Hi, Sofia. Madre and I have to go to work today, but after that, do you want to go to the store with me?"

"Yes," she nodded confidently, since she loved getting to run little errands like this one.

"You going to get Tim a birthday card?" Callie asked, even though she knew the answer already.

Arizona still did this every year. Obviously she understood that she couldn't give the cards to her brother, but she couldn't just stop buying them. In some strange way it helped to keep this one little part of her and her brother's relationship alive when so much of it had died along with him. She didn't like that this was irrational of her, but she couldn't help it.

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Are you going to pick a good card for Uncle Timothy, Sofia?" Callie asked, helping herself to some breakfast as well.

"Uh!" Sofia vocalized, as her way of complaining about this.

"Use your words," Arizona encouraged. "And Madre can eat our breakfast, too!"

"Mama?"

"We can all share," she nodded. "Sof, Mama, and Madre. Does that sound good?"

"Yum."

"It sounds yummy?" Callie asked. "Okay."

* * *

Arizona spent the rest of her morning trying to keep busy. If she thought today was bad, she knew that tomorrow would be even worse. She just had to keep going. Timothy would be on her mind all day, but she had other things to do right now.

"I love it when I get to send a tiny human home all healed and healthy," she told Teddy as she returned a chart to the nurse's station where it belonged.

Her friend smiled. "Well, that is kind of the reason we do this, is it not?"

"Yes," she nodded. "But it feels good. And today, I need good. This week...I need good."

"Callie told me," she said.

"I'm okay," she replied. "I've gotten through this week for years. It's never going to be easy, but I'm okay. Just forget I mentioned this week, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed.

"Now," she smiled, this one not as forced as the others because of what she was going to say next. "I have some time, so I'm going down to the daycare to peak in on that perfect kid of mine."

"No, you're not," Alex said as he walked up to them. "I have a patient for you to see."

"If you have a patient, why do I have to see them?" she asked. "Unless it's something complex, you have the abil-"

"Oh, I don't have the ability to handle this mom," he protested. "No way. Her kid's fine. He has one little bruise on his arm and she's panicking."

"Most moms know bruises well," she replied. "Kids fall and get bumps and bruises, and scrapes. We hate every single one of them, but still. There must be some reason why this mom is worried, Karev."

He sighed as he prepared to relay the history of this particular family to her. It was the kind of history that he hated to tell and that he knew she hated to hear.

"Noah's her second child. He's fourteen months. Her first child, a little girl, died at two. A.L.L."

"And now every bruise she sees freaks her out and she's convinced that her son has Leukemia, too," she realized. "Karev, what happened to the compassion you have now? Humour her. There's probably nothing wrong, but just talk to her. Convince her of that."

"I tried," he said. "She keeps asking questions, though. I told her I'd come get you. She seemed happier with that. I'm better with the showing compassion thing now, but there is nothing wrong with this kid and she doesn't believe anything I'm saying."

"Give me the chart," she requested.

She wanted to stop by the daycare and see Sofia first, especially because Alex didn't seem to think that there was anything wrong with Noah. However, she knew that – at least according to that mother – there was a definite need for her to go to that room as soon as possible. Sofia needed to wait.

"Hi," she smiled, walking into the exam room. "I'm Dr. Robbins."

The little boy was flipping through a toddler-friendly book that was filled with various different textures. He was clearly happy as could be, but that didn't mean that he wasn't sick. She had seen many happy, yet very ill, patients.

"And you must be Noah."

"Audrey," the mother introduced herself.

"Dr. Karev was filling me in on your history," Arizona said. "I thought I'd take a look."

"I just don't remember him falling," she replied as Arizona looked at the bruise. "And I'm not sure when he got it, so..."

"Well," she smiled. "Has he had any other symptoms? I'm not going to list them because you and I both know that you of all people would know them all too well, but..."

"No," she said. "He doesn't seem achy, he's not tired. In fact, he has all the energy in the world, nothing like that. I know, I know...I've caused two doctors to take time out of their days to look at a bruise. I just...I couldn't shake this feeling. In fact, I've had this feeling every day since Elle died, and today my husband wasn't home to talk me down. He's so much more...his brain isn't taken over my grief. He's grieving, but still. He can think logically. And I rush my kid here and make two medical professionals look at him. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she told her. "It's no problem. It's my job. And I have no reason to suspect that that's anything but a normal bruise. I could run blood work if that would make you feel okay about it, but I don't usually do blood work on such little guys unless I feel like it's a must. It's up to you, though."

"No," she said. "Don't. When Dr. Karev left, I realized how crazy I seem and –"

"Stop apologizing," she said. "I'm the one who's sorry that everything you've been through has caused you to feel like you have to bring your baby in every time he falls. I hope you don't, but if you have even the slightest feeling like you need to bring Noah in again, you know my name. I'd be more than happy to do whatever I can for you."

"Thank you."

* * *

"So how's your not so good good day going?" Callie said as she met her wife for a quick lunch an hour or so after that. "Because I have to say that I'm sort of impressed. By this time the last three days, you've made excuses to see me so that I could say something to make you feel better at least twice by now."

"I have not been –"

"Oh, you have," she said. "I didn't make a big deal out of it because I knew that this week sucks for you, but still. You totally have."

"We need to put Sofia in a bubble," she said, taking a sip of her water. "Kids...things happen and it messes parents up. My mom...this mom I met today...so many messed up parents with dead kids. I also discharged a patient this morning, though. So that was good. But still. Bubble."

"As much as I'm sure Mark would be all for it, I'm going to vote no on this one," Callie said. "In high school, I was so, so weird. And I didn't have three parents. Or a bubble."

"Having three parents does not make our child weird," she said. "It makes her awesome. All of those other kids only have one mom. She's so fabulous that she needs two of us to handle it all."

"Is that the case?"

"Oh, you know it. I mean, not that a kid needs three parents. Our next kid won't have that and it'll be equally fabulous. But by now we've gotten good at handling all of the fabulousness, so we can do it. But still. It's a perk, not something bad. If anyone tries to tell my kid something's wrong with her three parents –"

She laughed.

"I'm serious!"

"I know," she said. "Me too. I love it when you ramble. Wanna talk about it?"

"What?"

"The patient. The mom who..."

"Oh, the patient was fine. Not even sick. But his big sister died of A.L.L."

"Oh."

"So Mom sees a bruise on the other kid and panics now."

"Understandable."

"Yep," she nodded.

"After that, I stopped by the daycare," she said. "I didn't want to go in because I didn't want Sofia to see me and then decide that she would never let me leave."

"Right."

"But she was having fun," she said. "They were making some sort of art with colourful macaroni and she was going to town gluing it all over the paper. I swear all of the other kids were just shoving it up their noses or crunching away on it. Not her."

"So, we'll have macaroni art on the fridge for the next couple of weeks," Callie smiled.

"The best macaroni art of the entire class," she nodded. "Not that I'm putting any pressure on her. She's just super talented."

"At macaroni art."

"Correct."

"I know you're taking her to get your brother's card after work, but I doubt I'll be ready to leave when you are. Don't worry about dinner, though. I'll pick something up. I know that picking out a card is going to turn into playing with a few toys in the toy department. Maybe buying one...or three."

"Are you implying that I can't say no to her?

"I'm simply implying that this time, you won't."

"You might be correct," she said. "It's our little Mommy/Sofia date, though."

* * *

"Vroom!"

Arizona found herself making car-like noises as Sofia drove one of her new toys up her chest. She was also trying to open the door while juggling a few different shopping bags. She was in full-on Mommy multitasking mode and loving it. Sofia had helped her to select the perfect birthday card for her brother and – for once since Timothy had died – she didn't cry while they did so. The outing had gone well.

"Vroom!" Sofia replied as Mommy got the door open.

"Well, hi!" Callie smiled, meeting them at the door to give them both kisses, since she had just gotten home herself.

"Apparently somebody likes cars now," Arizona said, putting the toddler down. "I mean, we still had to admire three or four very pretty dollies, but she settled on the car this time."

"I see," she said. "Who's ready for some pizza? You want some pizza, Baby?"

"No," Sofia replied, as she "drove" her car over to the couch.

"It's dinner time," she told her. "C'mon and eat. Your car will be there when you finish, okay?"

"Oh, let her play for a minute," she said. "I have something for you, too."

"You do?" she asked as her wife rummaged through shopping bags.

Along with Timothy's card, she pulled out a book. It took Callie a minute to realize that this wasn't just any gift. The book wasn't just any ordinary book. On its cover were the faces of a few very adorable babies. Inside of it were lists and lists of names for babies just like them.

"A baby name book," she said. "What? Arizona, I –"

"Got rid of them all," she nodded. "Every last one. Well, technically there was one name book, and a bunch of pregnancy and new baby parenting ones to go with it. Still, the point is that you got rid of them."

"And you just gave me one," she smiled. "Does this? I didn't want these around, ready to trigger the baby fever, until you wanted to –"

"Start trying?" she asked, with a kiss that she hoped would stop Callie's thought process for a second. "I know."

"You want another baby?" she asked. "Now? You said we'd think about it when she was out of diapers and potty training is so –"

"I know I want another one," she explained. "It started out as an 'if' and then it became a 'when.'"

"Right."

"Some moms run out of time," she said. "I was watching Sof chat it up with one of the dolls she almost picked out and it just hit me. I'm waiting and what for? So that she's out of diapers before we have another one? And I could just embrace it. This baby...sadly we can't just make him or her the 'old-fashioned way.' It'll take time. And so what if we end up with two kids in diapers for a few months? We'll be up to our ears in poopy diapers, but we'll love it."

"Up to our ears, huh?"

"Not a great visual," she said. "You get what I'm saying, though, right? We want a baby. We weren't exactly ready for Sofia. Maybe you sort of were, but I was not. Not even a little."

"But you got there," she smiled. "And you realized that you need to just...get there again."

"Yes. Like I said, other moms would kill two have two kids and I'm sitting here waiting for I don't know what sign to tell me that I'm ready when I could just start being this baby's mom. Thinking like this baby's mom. Maybe this was the sign. Maybe my own grief brain that was searching for happiness and found it when I watched my kid playing with a doll, maybe...I don't know if I believe this, but you do."

"That Tim's telling you that this is right?" she smiled. "Maybe."

"Really though?"

"Are you sure?" she asked. "Because the beauty of this time is that we don't have to be freaked out and rushed."

"It's not rushed," she said. "There won't be a baby tomorrow. We have steps to go through first. Many, many, many of them. By the time there's a baby here, we will have done so much for this baby. I promise I will not be able to wait one second more to meet him or her."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure," she smiled. "Nobody gets total control over the 'when' of having a baby. If we had one tomorrow, that would be scary. Having one in a year or so will be great."

She kissed her.

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure. For the millionth time. I'm sure."

"It wasn't the millionth time," she said. "But okay. What now?"

"Now we talk," she said. "We decide things. Like who carries the baby, how we'll pick the perfect donor sperm, the best doctor..."

"The old-fashioned way isn't so stressful," she said.

"Well," she smiled. "We can do that, too. Plenty of that. It just won't make our baby."

"Sold," Callie said, giving her a kiss that got a little too passionate.

"Whoa," Arizona backed away. "Sofia."

"Who wants some pizza?" Callie said. "Come here, Sof. Pizza. Yum!"

Sofia stood up from her spot on the floor and headed over.

"Are you hungry?" Arizona asked, putting her in her seat at the table. "I bet. It's a late dinner for you."

Callie began serving her girls the slices of pizza. Even a simple pizza dinner felt special right now. In a way, it was. It was a celebratory dinner now.

"So, do you want to have this one or should I?" she blurted out.

"The baby?" she asked. "Callie, I just decided that I was ready. I don't know. I didn't work out the _whole_ plan in the toy aisle. We'll talk. If you want to, that's great. If not, I guess I could. I never thought I'd ever be pregnant, but I also never thought I'd have this lovely little lady and look! Here she is!"

Sofia giggled.

"Are you excited?" Callie asked the little girl.

"You're gonna be a big sister," Arizona told her.

"Don't tell her that right now," Callie said. "We have decisions to make."

"She has no idea what I actually mean," Arizona said, kissing Sofia's cheek. "Do you?"

"We're really going to do this?" Callie questioned. "One of us is going to start with the hormones and the –"

"The hormones aren't going to be my favourite part," she told her. "Maybe we should stop mentioning those for now. No offence, but when you were pregnant with Sofia, you weren't exactly..."

"I know."

"And I won't love injections."

"Well, no."

"But it'll be worth it," she decided. "There'll be another baby as perfect as Sofia and we'll love it."

"You're cheery all of the sudden," she commented.

"Tim would want me...Tim would want us to be happy, right?" she asked. "Doesn't mean I'll want to get out of bed tomorrow morning, but I'm trying. I'm living. I'm doing this."

"I'm glad," Callie said. "Thank you."

"For?"

"Not taking years to get ready," she laughed. "Because I would have waited for you. Really."

"But you're relieved that you don't have to."

"It's nice," she admitted.

"I thought so."

"So," she said. "When you were picking out that name book –"

"First our baby needs a uterus. Then a doctor and some sperm. Then it will need a name. When it exists. Steps, remember?"


	19. Celebration and Secrecy

"A picture of Sofia and some flowers?"

Callie was puzzled. It was a few days later now, the Thursday before Mother's day. To no one's surprise, Arizona had thrown herself into work, cuddles with Sofia, and discussions of baby plans over the last few days. That was how she made it through her brother's birthday without him. However, today – as she prepared her mom's Mother's day gift, she was doing better.

"Yes," she nodded.

"Your parents are flying in to spend Mother's day weekend here and we're handing your mom a picture and some flowers. That's the gift?"

Arizona sighed. She had never really explained to Callie why they kept Mother's day so low-key for her mom. Actually, up until now, Callie hadn't really questioned it. It was just that this year's gift didn't seem like much at all to her.

"Mother's day isn't the best day for my mom without Tim here. She still likes celebrating because I'm here and this year she's excited to be able to come here because she wants to spend time with us and with Sof, but still. She really wanted us to keep the gift simple this time around. And she's always saying we don't send her enough pictures of Sofia. That was all she wanted. I threw in the flowers because I think they'll be nice, too."

"Okay," she said. "That's perfect then."

Sofia reached her arm up, interested in seeing the framed photograph that was in her mother's hand. She had been waiting as patiently as her little self could for Arizona to show it to her and she hadn't yet.

"Would you like to approve it before I wrap it up?" she smiled. "Want to tell me if it's good?"

"Si," she nodded.

Callie spoke both English and Spanish and it had always been important to her that her children be exposed to both languages. Ideally, she wanted them to speak both as well. Now, however, she realized that that was easier said than done. With only one Spanish speaking parent – who could therefore only speak the language sometimes – it wasn't as simple. Plus, so far, Sofia hadn't really been interested in Spanish much. She was so little that English words were more than enough. However, a simple Spanish word would work its way out of her mouth every once and awhile. This, Madre decided, was fine too. Yet, she couldn't help but love it when Sofia used a Spanish word in the appropriate context. It just helped to prove that her child was a little genius, she insisted.

"Si, huh?" Arizona smiled.

"Please," Callie prompted, figuring that it was probably best to master manners in one language before moving on to the next. Plus, Sofia only knew three or four Spanish words – including madre – and por favour was not one of them.

"Si," she repeated.

"We heard that part," Arizona laughed. "Can you say 'please?'"

"Pease," Sofia smiled.

"Do you know who this really cute kid is?" Arizona asked, showing her the picture.

"Sof," she said, pointing to herself.

Sofia had recently started to point herself out in photographs and she was proud of this new talent. It was a game of sorts now and she always won it.

"That's right," she said, giving her a kiss. "Smarty pants."

She laughed as she left fingerprint smudges behind on the glass of the frame.

"You're adding your touch?" Callie asked her. "Do you think Grandma wants Sofia fingerprints?"

"Yep," she nodded.

"Should we wrap it up for her so that we can go out to dinner?" she asked.

As much as they were glad that Arizona's parents were going to be in Seattle for Mother's day, they also wanted to take some time to celebrate it themselves before the Robbins' arrived. They both had the night off because they had just worked double-shifts, so they were heading to dinner. They were taking Sofia with them, which meant that it wasn't going to be super fancy, but it would still be some quality family time.

"We are, we are," Arizona insisted.

They wrapped the gift – precious grandbaby fingerprints and all – before heading out the door. Just as they opened theirs, Mark appeared in his own doorway holding two pieces of crinkled up, slightly torn paper.

"Dada," Sofia smiled.

"Hi," he said, handing both of them to her. "Give these to your mommies, okay? Like we talked about last night. We'll do it now before you go to dinner so that they don't get all messy with Sofia dinner."

"That's what you're worried about?" Callie asked, eyeing the artwork she was holding.

"And how'd you know we were going now?" Arizona added.

"Because if you left any later than this, by the time you got to the restaurant and got your dinner, you'd be dealing with one very cranky toddler," he said. "Plus, I heard her saying 'go buh bye?'"

"True."

With some additional prompting by her mothers, Sofia handed them the artwork that she had made for them. Something fell off of Callie's.

"Is that a graham cracker?" she questioned as she picked it up.

"I put her bib on her while she did them," Mark laughed. "The one with the little pocket to catch the food she drops. Next thing I know, she found that piece and stuck it on there where I thought she was going to put one of those colourful pom pom things. She was so proud that I didn't want to tell her to take it off."

"Fantastic."

"Maybe we should stick to crayons for a while," Arizona suggested. "I love your creative streak, Miss Sofia, but graham crackers are meant for tummies, not Mother's day art."

"It's still beautiful," Callie told her mini-me before giving her a kiss. "Thank you very much, Sofia."

"Let's put these inside and then we'll go eat, okay?" Arizona smiled.

Instead, Sofia wrapped her little hand up in her mommy's and began walking. She didn't get to go to restaurants with her parents too often, but she did know what going out for dinner meant. She was headed to get some food.

"Apparently we'll go eat first," Callie laughed. "Are you paying Sofia?"

"No."

"No?"

"Happy Mother's day," Mark told them. "I know it's only Thursday, but you're celebrating tonight, so..."

"Thanks," they said in unison.

"Let's go," Arizona smiled. "Say 'bye' to Daddy."

She waved before she started trying to pull Mommy down the hall again.

"We're goin'," she laughed. "Hold your horses!"

* * *

"Our little ice cream addict is finally in bed," Callie smiled as she came down from Sofia's room to find Arizona pouring two glasses of wine for them. "Who knew that splitting a sundae three ways could still do that to her? She was so hyped up."

"But she loved it," her wife replied. "Her eyes were bugging out of her head when we told her she could take some bites."

"And she was so good. She only got up from the table once, she used the fork without even trying to protest..."

"I know. I felt like we were the best moms there and like we had the best kid there," Arizona admitted.

Callie smiled. "It's not a contest, but she's obviously the best one. Of all the kids. Ever. And I don't know about me, but I think you're a pretty great mom."

"So are you."

"Did you like the earrings?" she asked. "Really? Because that seemed like your 'not so excited, but trying to look like it' voice."

"I love them," she nodded. "They're gorgeous. But I'm a surgeon and a mommy. They're a little _too_ gorgeous. When am I actually going to wear earrings that pretty? That expensive."

"Ah, that's the point. You aren't supposed to know how much gifts cost," she smiled.

"Those are way more expensive than what I spent on you and you know it."

"Again, it's not a contest," she said. "And you'll get to wear them on our nights out. We need more of them. I've decided. When Sofia's at Mark's, we need to do more date nights. Or at least try. I know we usually work when she's at Mark's because that way we might be able to get time off once in a blue moon when she's here, but still. More dates."

Arizona handed her her wine glass and gave her a kiss to go with it.

"I like the way you think," she smiled.

"Well, I figure that date nights might not be as easy to have when we have the demanding careers and the _two _kids that we've now decided to have. So we'll have to do a whole bunch of those to hold us over for a while. Not for long, but just until we're out of that newborn stage."

"Yes," she agreed as they sat down. "But I missed a lot of Sofia's really new newbornness."

"Newbornness?" she teased.

"I say it's a word," she replied. "Anyways, I'm so grateful that I didn't _really _miss any of it. Other than her birth. It's still terrible that I wasn't there for that. But I woke up from the coma before I missed out on all of it. Still, you were doing so much without me before I was discharged. So, yeah. Newbornness might mean a few less dates, but I'm going to soak it up. As much as I can."

"Good," she smiled.

"Clearly they grow too fast," she said. "It's so cliché and everyone who even knows a kid says it. But Sofia's a toddler. How did that happen?"

"No idea."

"Me either," she smiled. "But I agree. We'll take full advantage of date nights now, so that we can take full advantage of baby time later. Not that we won't still have dates sometimes, but..."

"Yeah."

"I love that I won't miss any of it this time."

"So do I," she said. "So when do we plan to get started with this trying thing?"

"As soon as we figure out who carries this baby," she answered. "I know I've said I might because you got all the stretch marks, and the cravings, and the heartburn, and well, the labour the first time. But I don't want to just say I'm sure that I should carry this one until I'm completely sure. I'm not saying no, but I'm not saying I'm completely sure that I'm cut out for that either."

"Fair enough," she said. "And as much as I complained about feeling fat, being tired, and all of that, I can't say that I didn't also enjoy pregnancy too. I complained, but I grew somebody. That was great. I'd be more than happy to do it all again. Not so much the completely natural birth part. This time, there'll be an epidural, but I'll be happy with the rest of it and you'll get to be the supportive coach that I know you would have been so good at being. Either way, it'll be right."

"Sofia'll make a great big sister," she smiled.

"Oh, yeah," she said. "Question."

"Yeah?"

"Are we going to tell your parents that we're planning all of this?"

She laughed. "Right. I love my mom, but if we tell her that, she'll nag. She'll nag until there's a baby in her arms. This can be our little secret. Is that okay?"

"Sure."

"When one of us is pregnant and at a safe point in the pregnancy, we can shout it from the rooftops," she assured her.

She smiled. "Yes."

* * *

The weekend with Arizona's parents was great. It really was. Sofia loved getting to play with – and being spoiled – by her grandparents and it was nice to see the Robbins' enjoy a few days with her as well. Yet, the weekend with Arizona's parents was also turning out to feel very, very long. They found themselves feeling grateful when they got called into the hospital on Mother's day afternoon.

"Do you think she knows?" Callie asked her wife as they scrubbed out of surgery. "Your mom. She totally knows we're planning another kid. She keeps bringing up how big Sofia is and how she used to be such a little, squishy baby. Over and over and over. She knows. She's trying to pry the news out of us."

She smiled. "She's just my mom," Arizona said. "She gave up on having grandchildren when my brother died because she knew I didn't want kids. And then we had Sofia and it changed her. Now she's in love with the idea of as many grandbabies as she can get. Sofia's almost two. She thinks it's time we start trying again. She doesn't _know_ anything."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," she nodded. "It doesn't really make it any easier, but I'm sure."

"Good."

"This is going to sound really bad, but do you want to grab some lunch here before we head home?"

"On Mother's day?" she asked. "Arizona, my mom basically disowned me and your mom, though she's not being very subtle about her feelings toward a new baby, she's your mom. She loves you. She loves us. We love her."

"True," she said. "I'm the worst daughter ever. If Sofia ever wanted to ditch us on Mother's day –"

"Why would she ever want to do that?" Callie joked. "We're the coolest moms ever."

"We are," she agreed. "And other than the fact that she can't hide the fact that she wants more grandbabies, my mom's pretty cool, too. So, let's go home. My dad was trying to get Sofia to say 'happy Mother's day' last night. She just kept laughing in his face. Let's go see if he's made any progress."

Callie laughed.


	20. Getting Started

Arizona was supposed to be making breakfast for her little family, but she found herself just standing there watching Sofia play with her new cow stuffed animal. They had purchased it – along with two chickens, two pigs, and a horse – as part of the decorations for her second birthday party three weeks from now. Madre had decided to make it a "Down on the Farm" themed bash because of Mommy's thing for chickens.

"Arizona?" Callie asked, pulling her wife out of the trance.

"What?" she wondered.

"What's for breakfast?"

"Eggs, turkey bacon, and toast," she said. "Sorry, I was just –"

"Picturing what it would be like with two kids here?" she smiled. "I could tell. Are you as nervous as I am?"

A few days after the Robbins' left in May, they had made the official decision that Callie would be the one to carry their second child. Arizona didn't so much want the chance to be pregnant, but she did want the opportunity to experience the birth of their next baby first hand as her wife's support person. She had missed out on Sofia's arrival and she was already looking forward to it this time.

Today was the day of their first appointment with one of Seattle's best fertility specialists, Dr. Jade Griffin. Even though it was only going to be an initial consultation, both women had woken up surrounded by a nervous energy. They were finally starting the process. Still, they had to remember to pace themselves.

"Yeah," she answered, giving her a kiss. "I don't know why. It's not like we're actually _doing_ anything today. We still have decisions to make."

"About that, while I was on-call most of the night, I couldn't really sleep because one of my patients is critical, so I had to be ready to jump in if she needed me. My lack of sleep got me thinking. How exactly do we choose one sperm donor out of all the guys who have donated? I mean, obviously we want a guy with a good health history. As doctors, it would be kind of weird if we didn't consider health histories."

"Right."

"But other than that," she said as she cracked an egg. "How do we narrow it down? I mean, we could consider education, looks, religion...so many things. It sort of feels like we're making one of those designer babies and it's just not okay to get _that_ picky, is it?"

"I was thinking we could maybe pick a donor who looked the most like you," Callie suggested.

"Really?"

"Moo!" Sofia interjected as she hugged her cow friend.

"Cows do say 'moo!' Callie smiled. "That's right, Sof!"

"Can you come sit in your chair? Breakfast will be ready in a few minutes," Mommy told her.

"Moo cow?" she asked.

"No toys at the table," Callie said.

"Oh."

Callie picked her up and brought her over, placing her in her booster seat before giving her her sip cup full of milk.

"Good," she said, taking a sip.

"Did you know cows make milk?" Arizona told her.

She looked back at her stuffed animal. The exact expression that Callie made when she was trying to figure out what to do on a particularly challenging case at work was now all over their almost two-year-old's face. She was trying to understand how her cow had made this milk.

"Not your cow," Madre explained. "Real ones on farms. They give us milk."

She smiled.

"Anyways, back to the baby," she said. "We still only have one kid and we can't finish a conversation."

"That's okay," Arizona replied as she put an egg onto Sofia's pink butterfly-shaped plate.

"I just want to see what a combination of the two of us would look like," Callie told her. "Other couples get that. I know it wouldn't genetically be a combination of us, but it'll be just as much your baby as it will be mine."

"Yep," she nodded. "Just like its big sister. Right, Sof?"

"Huh?" she asked as Mommy gave her her egg.

"Are you Mommy's girl?" Callie asked.

"Yes," she smiled.

"So picking a donor who has similar features to you just seems right. Why not?"

"You get that your traits are more dominant, right? I mean, Sof got none of her looks from Mark."

"Still," she smiled. "And you never know. We could end up with a kid that looks just like Mommy. It's not impossible. Plus, do you have a better idea about how to choose one donor?"

"No," she said, giving her a kiss. "And I get what you're saying, but I think we already have our little us. Sof might not look like me, but she's such a little Robbins kid. Just like me when I was little."

Callie smiled as she poured herself a cup of coffee. "I know. I can imagine."

"Don't forget to take –" Arizona started.

"My vitamins," Callie replied, trying to find Arizona's reminder sweet as opposed to annoying if they were going to make it through another pregnancy and still get along well.

"I know you aren't pregnant yet –"

"But studies show that taking folic acid while trying can have benefits," she said. "I know, I know."

"I'll back off," she promised. "Really, I will."

"Thank you," she said. "I'd like to still love you when we have this next baby."

Arizona laughed, knowing that her wife was obviously just teasing.

"It's impossible not to," she said.

"So, we're still doing IUI as opposed to IVF, right?" Callie questioned. "As long as that's what Griffin thinks is best? We're not really in need of IVF. I can get pregnant."

"Yeah," Arizona said. "IUI it is."

* * *

Their appointment with Dr. Griffin was going well. They felt comfortable with her and she really took the time to answer all of their questions. They wanted to know many things – some just about the details – and others about what exactly their options were. If they wanted to start trying during Callie's next cycle, when would they have to select a donor by? How many vials of donor sperm did she recommend that they purchase? What medications would Callie be on? Given the fact that Callie had no fertility issues, was it possible that they could even try a natural IUI cycle without any medication?

After a while, the doctor's head started to spin.

"This might sound bad," she said. "And I will certainly be your doctor and answer all of your questions, but why me? Not to brag, but I'm among the top specialists in the city. Couples come to me when all else fails. You've had a successful pregnancy before. Barring any unforeseen issues, getting you pregnant should be a cakewalk. It may not happen the first time, but it still shouldn't be a problem."

"Good," Arizona smiled.

"We're surgeons," Callie explained. "We're the best of the best, too. We don't settle for just anyone."

She smiled. "Okay then. This is nice. So many of my cases are so sad. Not the success part of course, but all of the hard times that the couples go through. It's tough to watch. So, working with you guys will make me feel good at my job when sometimes I don't."

"You're the best," Arizona said. "But I'm glad we could help. Now, we can start next cycle right? Because we kind of can't wait for this baby."

"Arizona Robbins with baby fever?" Callie asked.

"I wouldn't call it 'baby fever'," she said. "It's not like that's all I'm focused on. I'm just as thrilled by time spent just the three of us. I'm not the one who eyes all of the baby clothes when we shop or who has already been looking at names."

"Okay, so maybe I have baby fever," she admitted. "But at least you're excited."

"We wouldn't be here if I wasn't."

"We can start next cycle," the doctor assured them. "As long as you have a sperm donor chosen by the time you're about to ovulate next month, that'll be fine. Callie'll have to call the office on cycle day one, and we'll go from there. I'll have her come in a few different times to monitor the cycle and then we'll set up an appointment to actually do the insemination when everything looks good."

"Okay."

"If you're only going to schedule one insemination each month –"

"Which is all I can do since I can't take that much time off every month. With all of the appointments alone, I'm pushing it," Callie said.

"Right," she said. "If that's all you're going to do, I strongly recommend against an unmedicated cycle."

"Because Clomid or injectables give us more bang for our buck," Arizona said. "Basically."

"Basically," she nodded.

"But they also increase the risk of her producing more than one egg," she said. "And of more than one egg turning into more than one baby."

"Yes," she answered.

"But that risk isn't insanely high," Callie said. "And the medicated cycle kind of would be more worth it for us. Can we really be in here two or three times in one week just because I'm ovulating?"

"You're right," Arizona agreed. "My brother always used to tell me I'd end up with like...five or six babies, though. If I end up with five or six babies..."

Callie laughed. "Relax. Odds are that we'll get one perfect baby."

"Think about it and get back to me," Dr. Griffin replied. "And get in touch with the sperm bank. Go from there. I know it's a lot of information and things to consider, but it's worth it. I haven't had a single patient get pregnant, have their healthy babies, and come back and tell me they regret any of it."

"Thank you," Callie said.

* * *

"I think injectables are a bit much for our situation, but Clomid could really be the way to go," Callie said as they both had a small break between patients later in the day.

"Are you sure you're up for the possible side-effects?" Arizona asked. "I mean, even if we put aside the multiples thing, because it's not like we _know _that'll happen, the other side-effects can get pretty intense."

"If the first cycle is hell, we re-evaluate," she said. "I want to get really good follicles so that doing this actually pays off."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," she said. "Can you put up with me and my possible Clomid-induced side-effects?"

She kissed her. "Of course. If you can put up with me and all of my nagging about vitamins and caffeine, and –"

"I've already cut back," she said.

"You have not," she laughed. "Yesterday you had already had two cups and then you had a third while you did that consult with Mark."

"Because he brought it for me," she said. "And he knows that I'm not likely to say no to caffeine. Ever. And he _doesn't_ know that we're trying."

"You drank it really fast," she said. "If you didn't want to drink it, you could have sipped it."

"Okay, so I'm thinking about cutting back," she smiled. "There's also no baby yet. Not a huge deal."

"I know," she smiled. "I'm just giving you a hard time."

"Hey," Mark said walking up to them with a huge grin on his face. "Tonight's my night with Sofia, but can you please take her? I'll take her tomorrow night."

"Sure," Callie agreed as she handed a chart back over to one of the nurses. "Why?"

"I did Lexie a favour and she agreed to get a drink with me," he announced.

"Again?" she asked. "Haven't you done _exactly_ that before?"

"And it worked," he smiled. "And it's going to work again. So she's had a few boyfriends since me. She's single, now, I'm single now..."

"Good luck," Arizona smiled.

"Thanks," he said. "Where were you two this morning? There was a situation at the daycare and you didn't answer my pages."

He had paged them both just as they were leaving the doctor's office. They fully intended to check and see what he needed when they arrived, but they got pulled into cases right away. They hadn't heard from him since, so they assumed that he had taken care of whatever it was.

"We had a thing. We weren't here. Sorry," Callie said. "What happened? Is she okay?"

"She was asking for Arizona. Not knowing this at all, I showed up to say good morning and she flipped out because I wasn't Mommy. It worked out, though" he told them. "Why did you drop her off and then leave?"

"Because we had a thing," Arizona said. "Don't pry. Go operate on somebody or prep for your date with Lexie, or something else."

"It's not a date," he replied. "I've been told. I've been told it's a drink between collegues."

"Right," Callie laughed.

"Exactly," he said. "And everything's okay, right? With the thing I'm not prying about?"

"Everything's fine," she said. "That's all we're saying."

"Were you going overboard with this birthday party thing?" he asked. "Sofia loves the theme, but I'm pretty sure she called _me _a chicken this morning."

"Really?!" Arizona asked. "I've been trying so hard to get her to learn 'chicken!'"

"It may have sounded more like 'cha-chen'" he admitted. "But yeah. Our kid called me a chicken."

"Awesome!"

* * *

"What's that guy?" Arizona asked as Sofia cuddled with one of her chicken stuffed animals after dinner that night.

She put it down and pointed to a pig instead. "Pink," she smiled.

"That pig is pink," she nodded. "But what was that other buddy called? Daddy told me you can say it."

She laughed.

"Are you teasing Mommy?" she asked her.

"Yeah," she giggled. "Maday?"

"Madre's in the office," she explained. "She and I are doing the same thing and we don't want to do it together yet."

They had gotten in touch with the sperm bank and learned that there was an online gallery of sorts where they could search for potential donors. Once they narrowed it down to a select few that they really liked, they could request pictures and other more detailed profile information. The ladies had decided to both look by themselves and then compare notes. If they had a few of the same donors on their lists, those would become the ones that they planned to choose from.

"Doin'?"

"I'm looking at people," she decided to say. "What are you doing?"

"Be Sof."

"You're just bein' Sof?" she smiled. "Well, that's a good thing, right?"

Callie came down the stairs with her laptop in hand.

"You're done already?" she asked.

"I didn't have the interruptions of Miss 'more juice!'" the whole time.

"Excellent point," she said. "I'm not done, though. Hold on a sec."

Callie sat on the floor, knowing that Sofia would head over for cuddles as soon as she did so. Sure enough, the little girl came over and parked herself right in Madre's lap.

"It's really bizarre to be able to literally pick out a guy in hopes that his swimmers'll make our baby," she told her wife.

"Yeah," she said. "I have to say that I have never spent this much time admiring pictures of men."

She laughed.

"Oh, this guy's a med. student," Arizona said. "That's promising."

"Oh, no," Callie replied. "Med. students are weird."

"Well, yes. They're awkward and clueless, but we started out there and we turned out pretty great."

"Still? What if he ends up going into like...geriatrics or dermo?" she asked. "Do we want to have Dermo Baby?"

"Geriatrics isn't all bad," she replied. "Some little old people can be quite charming. And a dude that's spending time taking care of the little old people...that's some good sperm," she said. "Plus, somehow we ended up with McSteamy's baby and she's so much more awesome than anybody probably ever thought his kid could be. Because she's ours and because Mark turned out to be okay."

"Did you just call him 'McSteamy'?" she asked. "That's a little disturbing."

She made a face when she realized. "Forget that part," she requested. "No to the med. student?"

"He's not on my list," she said.

"Which means that even if he's on mine, he's not the donor," she realized, closing the lid of her computer. "Okay. Done. Who do you have?"

Callie kissed the top of Sofia's head. "Can I stand up to show Mama something?"

Sofia stood up and went over to the couch where her Mom was. She put her thumb in her mouth as she leaned back against Arizona's arm.

"Hey," Arizona said. "No thumb sucking, my dear."

"Yeah," she smiled.

"No," she replied. "Are you listening?"

She removed her thumb from her mouth.

"Thank you," she said.

"Now," Callie told her wife as she moved Sofia so that she could sit. "There's one guy in here who doesn't really look all that much like you. I mean, he's blue eyed and blond, but not the same blue or anything. His features aren't the same really. Except for the dimples when he smiles. Those are so much like yours. I'm kind of a fan of this guy."

"Maday!" Sofia exclaimed, not too happy that she had just been moved again.

"Sit on my lap," Callie told her. "Sorry."

"Show me this guy," Arizona said.

Callie pulled up the picture. "Him," she pointed.

"Oh, he's on my list, too. I have others that I like more than him, though. He's the journalist, right?"

"Yeah."

"What about this guy?" Arizona asked, pulling up one of her favourites. "I looked at him for a while. He could be a contender."

"He's not on my list."

"Oh."

"But you have a point," she said. "Maybe."


	21. Two Years

**Thank you so much for the reviews. Keep them coming. They're awesome :)**

* * *

Arizona woke up three weeks later knowing, once again, just how amazing that was. Every day since she had come out of her coma two years ago was a big deal, but the anniversary of this event – the second one they had celebrated – meant so much. Everything could be so different. Instead of having the soon-to-be expanding family she had, she could be gone right now. She could have missed out on all of the joyful – and even the tough – times over the past couple of years. Thankfully, she didn't.

"I've got coffee," Callie told her wife as she entered their bedroom.

When she awoke, Arizona had still been peacefully dreaming. She knew that this wasn't likely to last. Sofia had slept at Mark's last night, but Mommy and Madre were still very used to early mornings. They never really slept in much anymore.

"Thank you," Arizona smiled.

"I feel bad saying this," her wife replied as she got back into bed and held the blond. "But as much as I'll love this next baby and I can't wait to celebrate birthdays of theirs, this day will always be the best one. I got both of my girls on this day."

"We can't keep talking about the baby," she warned. "Yesterday my mom almost saw one of the donor profiles and we agreed to wait to tell anyone until the first trimester is over. Or at least until you're pregnant and Baby has a heartbeat. Keeping a secret for months and months might be too hard, but we cannot tell anyone before there's an actual baby. Especially not my parents. My mom will not be able to handle waiting."

"I know," she agreed. "My next cycle starts next week, though. We have to pick a donor soon if we're going to try this month. I start Clomid soon and I don't want to be taking it for no reason."

"We'll choose," she assured her, giving her a kiss.

"What's your feeling today?" the Latina wondered.

They had narrowed it down to three donors, but they just hadn't been certain about which one they should choose. Arizona had been especially indecisive, having had a different feeling about which one was right every single day for weeks now.

"The teacher," she answered. "There's just something about him that seems to be telling me he's our donor. Then again, yesterday I was ready to pick the culinary student."

Callie laughed. "Yeah."

"What are you thinking?"

"I think you should pick. I've helped narrow it down, so I've had my say, but you should pick the one."

"Why?" she asked. "Because we're using your egg? Calliope, that was _our_ decision not just yours. The donor shouldn't be just my call."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely."

"The teacher really does look like you, you know," Callie smiled.

The next thing they knew, their doorbell had rung not once but twice. At this time of the morning, this could only mean one thing. The birthday girl had arrived. Her mommies put on their robes and headed down to the door.

"No more talking about the baby," Arizona whispered to Callie.

"I know. Open the door."

"Happy birthday!" Arizona smiled as she opened it up and found Sofia and Mark on the porch – the toddler in his arms snacking on some dry fruit – waiting.

"Hi," she smiled.

"It's your birthday, Sof! Today's your party day."

Sofia didn't exactly grasp the concept of her birthday just yet. They had been talking about it, explaining how old she would be and that there would be a party for her, but they weren't sure that she really comprehended the milestone.

"Do you know how old you are?" Mark asked. "Show Mommy and Madre what we worked on last night."

Sofia held up two fingers. "Two," she smiled.

"You're two!" Arizona replied, taking her from Mark as they came in. "So big!"

"She's not two until ten twenty-four," Callie said. "I'm soaking up every minute of her twenty-three-month-oldness while I can."

Mark laughed. "She might not get the getting older part, but she sure knows there's going to be a party. She woke me up at five a.m. on the dot going 'Party, Dada?' Cake, Dada?'"

"You want your party and your cake?" Callie asked.

"Yay!" Sofia replied.

"It's a bit too early for cake," Arizona yawned. "How about we have birthday pancakes first? Mommy will make yours shaped like a two."

Sofia put one of the tiny pieces of apple she had been snacking on on the way over into Mommy's mouth.

"Yum?" she asked. "Yum, Mama?"

"Delicious," Arizona nodded. "Thank you!"

* * *

Sofia decided that she didn't want to get dressed after breakfast, which was fine since her party wasn't until the late afternoon – hopefully after a good long nap – anyways. For now, she was hanging out on Grandma's lap in the living room still wearing the goldfish pyjamas that Daddy had brought her over in.

"Is this a good birthday so far?" Grandma asked her.

"Yep."

"Are you going to have a party soon?" Abuelo questioned. "With all of your friends?"

"Well, all of Madre, Mommy, and Daddy's friends," Callie said.

"Will's girls are coming," Arizona reminded her. "I know they're older than her, but they're still kids."

"True."

While they couldn't say that they were exactly best friends with the former medical student – now resident – who they had encountered for the first time the day of the accident, they did find it cool that he would be there to help celebrate Sofia's birthday. The things that he had done for Callie on that horrible day a month before the little lady's birth made him a very special person to their family.

Grandpa noticed Sofia's eyes wander over to the pile of gifts that had already begun to form. They weren't expecting any of their friends to buy Sofia anything – even though they suspected many would – so they had purchased many little gifts for her themselves. That way, it still felt the same to her, even if no one actually brought a present. The ones from her parents and grandparents would make her happy enough.

"Are those for you?" he asked her.

"Would you like to open one?" Arizona added. "You can open one now and save the rest for the party."

"Yep, pease," she nodded.

"Oh, good manners," Mark smiled, taking her off of Grandma's lap. "Pick one," he told her, holding her so that she could see them all. "Point to the one you want to open now."

"Dat," she pointed. "Dat, dis, dat..." she continued, selecting many of them.

"One, Baby," Callie laughed.

Mark picked up the first one that she had chosen. The wrapping made it very obvious that this was a book, but Sofia didn't know that. Her eyes were wide with excitement.

"This one's from Mommy and Madre," he said. "Open it up."

She ripped into the wrapping – and almost into the book, but not quite – to find her present.

"Book," she said.

"It is a book," Callie smiled. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

"What do you say?" Arizona questioned. "Thank you?"

"Tanks," she said. "Book!"

"It's called 'Lulu Turns Two,'" Madre explained.

Sofia gasped.

"Oh!" Grandma replied. "Is that as old as you?"

She held up two fingers.

"The girl in your book is two just like you," Grandpa told her.

"It's her birthday today, too!" Arizona smiled loving that one book could give her girl so much joy. "Should we read this book?"

"Yeah," she nodded, opening it up.

"You're going to read it to us?" Mark asked.

"Yep," she said.

"Tell us what's going on," Callie smiled.

Sofia went through the book and pointed out all of the details on each page. She had to point out that Lulu's dress was blue, that there were "pity" decorations, that Lulu was happy, and that there was cake. The passion with which she told this little story was hilarious. By the end, everyone was giggling right along with the tiny storyteller.

"That was such a good story," Arizona told her, wishing they had recorded her version. "Can you tell it again? Mommy wants to get the video camera."

"Yeah," she agreed.

"Thank you."

Sofia told the story again, talking about the same pictures but adding in some new details as well. This time, she also insisted on stopping after each page and looking up at the camera where she would bat her tiny eyelashes.

"How do you know how to do that?" Arizona asked. "Crazy girl!"

"Mama," Sofia said.

"I'm the crazy one?" she laughed. "I don't think so!"

* * *

"Sofia, are you finished with your cake?" Arizona asked.

She had asked to be let down from her spot at the table so that she could go play with one of Will's little girls. Bridget was almost a year-and-a-half older than she was, but Sofia hardly even noticed and Bridget was having a blast with her little buddy.

"No," she said.

"Come eat the rest then," she smiled.

"She's busy," four-and-a-half-year-old Vivienne – Bridget's big sister – replied.

Sofia came walking over to the table and opened her mouth, as if she was telling Mommy that she wanted her to feed her quickly so that she could get back to the other fun that was going on.

"Oh, you can feed yourself," she said, even though she caved and gave her a bite anyway. "But I'll help because it's your birthday. Okay?"

"Got toy," she told her mom.

"You got toys? I know. You're a spoiled girl, aren't you?"

Just then, Mark came over with Lexie, who had yet another gift in her hands. She had arrived late to the party, but the fact that she was there at all was kind of a surprise. She and Mark had been spending more time together in the last few weeks, but she was always very clear that they were not together.

"Happy birthday," she told the little girl. "I brought you a present. Are you busy with your cake?"

"Dat?" she asked.

"You have to open it to see," Mark said. "Want to open it?"

"Yep," she nodded.

Lexie handed Sofia the gift and she tore it open. Inside was a set of tiny hair accessories.

"Huh?" she asked.

"They go in your hair," Arizona explained. "They'll make it super beautiful. Can you tell Lexie 'thank you?'"

"Sof pity," she said.

"You will be really pretty with those," Lexie said. "I didn't know if you sit still long enough to get much done to your hair, but I just thought those were so cute that I had to get them."

"She's getting better," Mark said. "She actually let me braid it the other day."

"You call that mess a braid?" Arizona laughed. "Oh, Mark. You try and it's sweet, but you have a lot to learn."

"She doesn't have a ton of hair. There isn't much too braid. Sofia thought it was good," he said. "Right, Sof? Was your braid good?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Well, that's all that matters, right?" Lexie asked.

Callie came over to see what was going on.

"Oh, you got another present?" she asked. "Did you say 'thank you?'"

"Tanks," she smiled.

"You're very welcome," Lexie said. "I can't stay long because I have to go back to work, but I wanted to come tell you happy birthday."

"To Sof," she said.

"To Sofia, yes," she agreed.

"Should we finish up your cake?" Arizona asked. "I think Bridget wants to play some more."

"Yeah," she nodded.

"Ask Lexie if she wants a piece," Mark said.

"Mine."

"I won't take your piece," Lexie promised. "But can I have my own piece? It looks good."

"Yep," she nodded.

* * *

The party went well and it was so much fun to see Sofia enjoying her day. However, the evening that she had with just her moms and her grandparents – because Daddy had to go to the hospital for an emergent patient – was probably Callie's favourite part.

"Is this fun?" Grandma asked.

After dinner, which was decidedly light since Sofia had filled up on cake and treats all afternoon, she sat on the floor with Mommy and happily let Arizona do her hair. This was the first time ever that she hadn't protested at all. That was probably due to the fact that Madre was taking pictures and she loved the camera, but it was still nice.

"You're being so cooperative," Arizona told her.

"Pity, Mama?" she asked.

"You're going to be gorgeous," Callie promised.

"Say 'Madre, I'm always gorgeous!'" Mommy replied. "Even with messy hair."

She nodded. "Ouch," she said as Arizona accidently tugged on a strand of hair because Sofia's head moved forward.

"Sorry," Arizona told her.

"Hur' Sof," she said, touching her head.

"I didn't mean it," she explained. "A few more minutes and then I'll be all done."

She yawned. It had been such a big day for such a little girl. In fact, they didn't think that she would even be awake this long. They assumed that she would have fallen asleep right after dinner.

"Are you almost ready for bed?" Madre asked.

"No bed," she refused.

"Oh, yeah. You can even cuddle with your new friends from Uncle Derek and Auntie Meredith. Which animal do you want to cuddle with tonight? The penguin or the kitty?"

"Dog," she answered.

"You didn't get a new dog," she said. "You have one, but he's not new. You don't want to cuddle with a new stuffed animal?"

"Dog."

"Well, okay then," she smiled.

"Did you have a good birthday?" Arizona asked.

"Yep," Sofia nodded.

"Good. Your birthday's such a special day, isn't it?"

"Cake, Mama," she smiled. "Cake stuff."

"Because you get cake and stuff?" she asked. "Well, yes. But when you get older, we'll have to tell you why _exactly_ we love your special day."

* * *

Callie found herself just watching her wife sleep in the middle of the night that night. She was resisting waking her up. She shouldn't do it, but she wanted to. She had something to discuss with her and she didn't even want it to wait until morning. Sure, it definitely could, but she just had to say it now.

As if she could somehow sense this, Arizona woke up all on her own. She was much less happy to be awake at this hour than her wife seemed to be.

"Why are you staring at me?"

"Because I want to pick a donor," she said. "Right now. So that neither of us change our minds in the morning."

"Why?" she asked. "We've waited three weeks. A few hours of sleep won't –"

"I just dreamed that we used the teacher's sperm and had the most gorgeous baby," she smiled.

The blond was a little more awake now. She still wanted to go back to sleep, but she was also intrigued.

"Boy or girl?" she asked. "Not that it matters, but what was it?"

"I don't know," she said. "We were calling it Jamie. Couldn't that go either way?"

"Exactly why we will not be naming him or her Jamie in real life," her wife decided. "And how do you not know the gender, but you do know who the sperm donor was?"

"We were telling my dad what we know about the donor," she explained.

"Oh."

"It just feels right," she said. "I know it was a dream, but you were favouring the teacher today and I had this dream."

"Okay," Arizona smiled, giving her wife a kiss. "We have a donor."

"We do."

"Can I go to sleep now?" she requested. "We'll have the rest of our lives to think about how we made the right choice. Not that any of them would be a bad choice since it's our child, but you get what I mean."

"Yes," she nodded. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

"You're really pretty when you sleep," Callie added.

"I love you, too."


	22. Nerves

**Thanks for all of the reviews. I love them. :)**

* * *

"How are you feeling this morning?" Arizona asked her wife a few weeks later.

They were officially trying to conceive now. Callie was just a couple of days away from ovulation and the Clomid that she had been taking was not making it very pleasant. Callie was experiencing a feeling of abdominal heaviness as well as headaches. Statistics told them that both of these were rare side effects, but Callie didn't believe that most women sailed through a cycle on Clomid without feeling anything. If they did, she was certainly not too pleased with her luck. Her wife wasn't about to tell her this, but they could add mood swings to the list of not so welcome symptoms, too.

"The usual," she groaned as Arizona placed a cup of coffee down on the bedside table for her. "Thanks."

"No problem," she smiled, rubbing Callie's arm sympathetically.

"I don't know how infertile women do this for years on end just hoping for a kid. At least we know that it's likely to work for us. That makes it worth all of this."

"Yeah."

"What do you mean 'yeah'?" she snapped. "You're not taking the meds. and feeling bad before you're even pregnant."

"I just know that it's going to pay off," Arizona said, deciding to hold her tongue and just give her wife a morning kiss instead of saying anything else in response.

"Is Sofia up?"

"Not yet," she replied. "She had a rough night last night."

"She did?"

"I was up with her a few different times," she said. "I think she might be coming down with something. No fever or anything like that, but something just seemed a little off."

"I slept through all of that?"

"It's okay. I handled it."

"Thank you," she said. "You sure you can't push back your surgery to be able to go with me to my appointment?"

What would hopefully be Callie's last appointment before the actual IUI was today. Unfortunately, the timing of each of these appointments depended on how her cycle was going, so it was hard to be able to plan for them too far in advance. Arizona had a scheduled surgery on a little boy who she felt couldn't wait any longer to have his tumour removed.

"No," she said. "I'm sorry. I promise I'll be there for the actual IUI."

"Good," she replied. "I've been awake for just a few minutes and this day already sucks. Sofia's not feeling well, you can't come to Griffin's office with me...at this rate Griffin will decide that there's a reason to cancel the IUI all together this month."

"That's not going to happen," she said. "There's no indication that this cycle's not going well. We could be expecting baby number two by the end of this month for all you know. Be positive. It'll help."

"I don't think my attitude matters," she replied. "People get pregnant every day without even trying. I did."

"I know," she said. "But still. Smile. It makes me happy."

"Maday! Mama!" Sofia cried out from her room.

"I'll be back," Arizona told Callie. "Our girl doesn't sound too happy today, either."

"No."

Arizona walked into Sofia's bedroom to find her still in bed with a bright red, runny nose. She clearly didn't feel any better. She was reasonably sure that her daughter just had a common cold, but it didn't make it any easier to see her looking so upset. In her mind, nothing should ever happen to her child. Sure, that wasn't realistic, but she really wished it was. She put on her best sympathetic mommy smile and hoped that a little love would help.

"You're feeling yucky today, huh?" she asked, picking her up and sitting down just to hold her for a minute.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Seep, Mama."

"You're sleepy?" she asked. "I know. We'll give you some medicine and it'll help you feel better. You'll still be tired, but it'll help."

"No," she refused.

"Well, I'm the mommy and the doctor, so how about yes?" Arizona replied, giving her a kiss.

When she couldn't hear Arizona and Sofia going through the new routine of naming body parts while the little girl was dressed, Callie came into the room. Arizona was still cradling Sofia in her arms.

"Should we call Mark and see if he can take the day off?" she wondered. "I know you can't and I can't since I've already taken so much time off for all of these appointments. I have to at least _go_ to work today if I want to keep being able to get to leave early when I have to."

"I know," she said. "It's just a cold, though. We'll call Mark, but she'll be okay once we get some meds. in her system. I don't think she has a fever. She probably got the cold from another kid at daycare anyways."

"True."

"Worse comes to worse, if she's not doing any better, you take her when you leave."

"And bring her to my appointment?"

"What choice do we have? We're such busy parents and if you don't go to the appointment, there's a chance that the timing of the IUI could be thrown off and lessen our chances of conceiving this month."

"I know," she said. "I just feel bad."

"You'll be okay, right Sof?" Arizona asked.

She smiled.

"There's that smile we love!" Callie smiled.

* * *

Unfortunately Mark was already in the operating room by the time they called him. They gave Sofia some medicine and hoped that it would ease her symptoms enough for her to make it to the mid-afternoon when Callie could pick her up. Arizona checked in with the daycare staff a few hours after dropping her off and it seemed to be working. Now that Sofia had the distraction of her little friends, she seemed to be in a much better mood and the medication seemed to be working for her.

Yet, by the time Callie had to leave for her appointment, Sofia was low on energy once again. She walked into the daycare to find Sofia sitting on Mark's lap sniffling away as he tried to settle her into a late nap. Even though she was tired, the daycare staff couldn't get her to stay asleep for very long. Knowing that she needed the rest – and because they were busy caring for other children as well – they had paged Mark to come.

"Ow," she complained as he attempted to get her to blow her nose.

"I know," he told her. "I'm sorry, Sof."

"You ready to go?" Callie asked, taking her from Mark's arms.

"You're going home?" he questioned.

"I have an appointment," she explained. "And I guess she's coming with me since she's clearly not doing well here."

"An appointment?" he asked. "Have all of these 'things' you and Robbins have been doing appointments?"

"No comment," she replied. "If you needed to know, we'd tell you, Mark. Trust me. You'll know at some point."

"But everything's okay, right?"

"Yes," she assured him.

"Okay," he said. "I already called a sitter for tomorrow just in case she's still not feeling well enough to be here. And I can take her tonight. I'm assuming last night wasn't fun for you and Arizona."

"I slept through it, but Arizona was up with her a few times."

"Oh."

"Sof, can you say 'bye' to Daddy?" Callie asked. "We're going to go?"

"Home?" she wondered.

"Not exactly," she answered. "But you can sleep in the car, okay? Madre'll put on your lullaby CD. I think it's in my car still. That helps, right?"

Mark gave Sofia a kiss.

"Daddy'll make macaroni and cheese just for you tonight," he promised. "Hopefully you'll eat."

"Did she not eat lunch?" Callie asked.

"Apparently she just picked at it."

"Oh."

* * *

Callie was lucky enough to have Sofia fall asleep in the car and somehow stay asleep. She laid her down across on the extra chair in the exam room just before Dr. Griffin entered the room. Madre knew that her girl was likely to wake up soon since she hadn't been sleeping well today, but she was hoping that they could just finish the majority of the appointment before this happened.

"Hi," the doctor said, in her usual tone since she didn't know that there was a sleeping two-year-old in the room. "Oh, sorry," she whispered when she noticed.

"I'm sorry," Callie replied. "She's sick today and it just wasn't okay to keep her to daycare. Arizona's in surgery and Sof's dad's still working too, so she had to come. Apparently I'll be taking the rest of the day off."

"It's fine," she said. "It happens."

"I'm really, really hoping for good news today," she said. "As in you saying that we can do the IUI in a couple days."

"I know," she said, already well aware of Callie's feelings toward the Clomid. "How's the abdominal discomfort been? Better? Worse?"

"The same," she said. "And I'm willing to be on the Clomid as long as I have to. It's not _that _bad and it'll be worth it –"

"But you're really hoping this cycle's IUI works?" she asked.

"Exactly."

"The overwhelming majority of my patients say that," she smiled. "Let's have a look."

After doing an ultrasound, Dr. Griffin decided that they were almost ready to go ahead with the IUI. In order to maximize their chances of conceiving and time Callie's ovulation just right, the ladies had decided to do a "trigger shot" of hormones that would help them better predict just when Callie would ovulate.

"Do the trigger shot tonight and we'll do the IUI Thursday morning," the doctor instructed.

"Okay," she said.

"Any questions?"

"Nope," Callie told her. "Though, suddenly I'm _really _nervous. Sofia has three parents and we could barely handle a cold today. A toddler and a newborn, possibly more than one newborn if Arizona's fear of multiples comes true, might be a little bit crazy. And when one gets sick, they both will now and we'll have double the work and only two parents for the baby. As much as I wanted this good news, it's also slightly overwhelming at this exact moment."

She smiled. "That's why pregnancy takes forty weeks," she told her. "If babies just showed up out of the blue, parents would lose their minds. You get time to prepare. I mean, as much as you can be _prepared _for something like that."

"Yeah."

"I have two kids and a busy career and I'll tell you it's hard, but doable. Granted, I'm not a surgeon, but still."

"I know it is. I don't know why I'm worried about it all of the sudden."

"Because this is big," she said. "But worth it."

"Definitely."

* * *

"We could make a baby on Thursday morning," was the first thing that her wife said as she walked through the door later on. "Big, big stuff. Wow."

"So you're freaking out too?" Callie asked.

She was slightly worried about revealing this feeling to her wife. It had taken Arizona longer to even want to try. What if Callie's sudden nerves got to Arizona and made her suddenly change her mind? Callie still wanted a baby. She knew that. Still, she also wanted to be able to share every step of this with her wife.

"You're freaking out?" Arizona replied, a puzzled look falling over her face. "You, Calliope Torres, are freaking out about getting pregnant? Are you sick too?" she asked, joking feeling her forehead.

"It's just that thing where you wait and wait for the big thing and then, just before you get it, you start thinking too much. Like graduating for med. school. When we were _in _med. school, we couldn't wait to be interns. Yet, the first day of our intern year, we thought we were going to throw up or pee our pants, correct?"

"Or cry," she added. "Authority issues."

"That too," she said. "I'm looking so forward to a new baby, but life as we know it is going to change. For the better, but still."

"Why do you think I needed time to get on board?" Arizona laughed. "But it's going to be perfect. Even if we're nervous right now. That's good. It also means we're hopeful. If we were about to do this trigger shot and we didn't feel anything, that probably wouldn't be a good sign."

"Good point," Callie smiled.

"I had a lot of time to think after I got your text. Though, a family with four-year-old triplets came in and that didn't help matters."

"What happened to 'I can't live without you and our ten kids'?"

"I may have been aiming too high," she said. "Two. I can't live without you and our two kids. And someday a dog. When the new baby's old enough to be gentle with one."

"Yes," she smiled. "We don't need a dog _and _a very, very tiny human at the same time."

"You just said 'tiny human,'" she pointed out. "I love it."

"Speaking of the tiny human we currently have, is she at Mark's already?"

"Yep," she nodded. "And apparently she's doing better. He gave her a warm bath and it seemed to soothe her, he said. He just called and now they're watching Dora."

"Good," she replied. "In that case, what do you say we go out for one last date night before we could possibly have two kids?"

"That takes a whole pregnancy," she said.

"Still. One last pre-potential pregnancy night out," she proposed.

"Sure," she smiled. "Sounds great.


	23. Trying

Even though it was just over a thirty hour wait, it felt like Thursday morning would never come. There was so much riding on this one day and they were just hoping that this cycle would work. If it didn't, they would simply keep trying, but they didn't want to have to.

"Any questions?" Dr. Griffin asked after the procedure.

"I think I know what your answer will be, but can I test at all or do I have to wait for the blood test?" Callie wondered.

"You can," she replied. "Most doctors advise against it because it usually just sets people up for a let down, but it's not impossible to get an accurate result after a Clomid IUI with a trigger shot. If it were me, I'd test early. You'll get a positive, but that first one will be the trigger shot. The hormones will still be in your system. A few days later, test again. You actually want a negative that time to know whether or not the trigger shot is still in your system. After that, wait a few days and test again. If you get a positive then, there's a chance of pregnancy. There's also a chance that it's not completely accurate, but it's better than nothing. I tell most of my patients to wait, but since you asked and you're doctors so I know that you know that a home pregnancy test could be wrong, technically you can."

"We're just setting ourselves up for disappointment," Arizona told her. "Don't even test. You're a doctor, Calliope. You should know better than to even ask that."

"Oh, so if I get a negative and then a positive after a decent amount of time, you don't want me to tell you?" Callie asked.

"No," she said. "Okay, well, maybe, but I won't be totally sure until the blood test."

"Obviously," she said.

"Just go home and take it easy for at least today," the doctor told Callie. "Try not to obsess. I know that's not possible, but try. Keep yourselves busy. After the taking it easy today."

"That won't be a problem," Callie assured her. "We have demanding jobs and a toddler. We'll be busy."

"Good," she smiled. "I'll see you in two weeks. Call me if you have any other questions. Don't call me if you get a positive in three days though. I won't believe you."

Callie laughed.

* * *

"Your sniffles are all gone, huh?" Arizona asked Sofia as she lifted the little girl up to sit on the counter that afternoon.

"Yep," she nodded.

Sofia still had a lingering cough, but the cold that she had was pretty much over with already. She had been down for the count for a couple of days, but today was a totally different story.

"Should we make Madre lunch?" she questioned.

Callie was lying on the couch watching TV. As was normal after an IUI, she had had some cramping and she was just taking it easy. Arizona had to work tonight, but Callie would be off for the whole day.

"Madre's capable of making her own lunch," she replied. "I'm not sick."

"Sofia and I are just practicing pampering you," she smiled. "Right?"

"I hope I'm pregnant just so that I don't have to deal with you after an IUI again," she teased.

"Cook, Mama?" Sofia asked.

"What should we make for lunch?" she questioned.

"Mac chee," she smiled.

"Macaroni and cheese?" she asked. "Daddy said you had that twice at his place. Pick something else. Want to make little pizzas on the English muffins? Those are good, right?"

"Wif chee?"

"With cheese," she agreed. "Can you say 'cheese?'"

"Chee!" Sofia smiled her goofiest grin.

"Not like I'm taking your picture," she laughed. "You're such a crazy lady!"

"Mama cray."

"_I'm _crazy?" she asked, as she let her down from the counter.

Now that they were making the English muffin pizzas, she would need the counter space. She would still let Sofia help, but she would hold her up.

"Yep."

"Madre's crazy," she told her. "Madre's going to spend the next two weeks peeing on sticks when we won't know if they're telling the truth or not."

"Which is why I'll test until I get a negative to tell me it's not the trigger shot," Callie said. "You heard her. It's not foolproof, but it's something. In a few days the suspense will be killing you, too."

"Maday?" Sofia asked, coming over to her.

"What?"

"Pee sick?" she asked.

"Oh, great," Arizona said. "Now she's going to encourage you."

"Or tell Mark," Callie realized. "This might be bad."

"She can't even stay stick," Arizona said. "Hopefully Mark doesn't clue in."

"Hopefully," she said. "Sofia, it's a secret, okay?"

"Huh?"

"We don't tell anyone."

"No puppy?" she asked.

Arizona laughed. Her toddler brain never ceased to crack her up. Sure, Sofia had no idea what they were really talking about, but it still had nothing to do with puppies. Yet, she was clarifying that she couldn't tell anyone's dog.

"No puppies and no people," she replied. "Ask Madre what she wants on her pizza."

"Sof?" Sofia asked.

"I don't want you on my pizza!" Callie laughed. "Even if you are so cute that I could eat you up!"

She giggled.

Callie got up, picked up Sofia, and brought her into the kitchen. "Let's make pizzas."

"We were making lunch while you relaxed," Arizona replied.

"I'm fine, Arizona."

"Fine," she said. "I'll let you help us if you promise not to test until the blood test."

"Fine," she reluctantly agreed. "But waiting's going to be so annoying."

* * *

Three days later, the wait was already getting to them. Arizona was feeding one of the babies in the N.I.C.U. when her wife walked in. She had actually paged her for a legitimate reason today, unlike the past two where she just wanted to "ooo" and "aww" over perfect new people with her for a few minutes.

"Again?"

"This little guy's shoulder was dislocated during delivery," she explained. "Can you take a look? I think it's just going to keep popping back out if we don't do something."

"Who popped it back in without anesthesia?" she asked. "I mean, I'm not crazy about putting such a little baby under, but ouch!"

"That would be one of the interns," she answered. "I guess she convinced the parents that it would be easier on him than going through anesthesia would have been."

"Which means now I have to convince them to let me use anesthesia when they've just gotten the idea that he's better off without because of his age?" Callie questioned as she took the little boy from her wife carefully. "You poor thing!" she told the tiny patient.

"It actually doesn't seem to be bothering him too much," Arizona said. "I'm sure he screamed like none other when they did it, but since then he's barely been fussy. He's eating so well. He's obviously not wanting to move the arm, but..."

"Yeah," she said. "How was an intern the only one to attend delivery?"

"No idea," she replied. "I'm only the Pediatric surgeon."

"Dr. Robbins is trying to be humble," Callie told the patient. "She's so good at her job. The best. And the two of us together, we're practically unstoppable. You're in good hands, okay?"

"He's adorable, isn't he?"

"Totally."

"I'll go get the parents," Arizona offered. "Mom was trying to get some rest upstairs."

"Okay."

"And while I'm gone, maybe you could go test," she whispered.

Even though she had told Callie not to, she was regretting that decision now. Yes, they could not know _for sure_ until the blood test, but they could have an idea. She had been online researching this very topic and she had discovered the stories of quite a few women who had received accurate pregnancy test results once they knew that a "trigger shot" was no longer in their systems.

"What?"

"Caleb and I talked about it and he agrees that there are not enough adorable babies in the world for Dr. Robbins to take care of until we know. Dr. Robbins can only keep herself so busy when there is downtime at work and Sofia's at daycare."

Callie laughed. "Okay."

"Plus, if our baby is in there, I want to know as soon as I can. If we get a false positive we'll get over it. We can try again."

"And it's not like we'll have to untell our friends," Callie considered. "A little false excitement isn't the end of the world on a first cycle. Maybe on a fourth or fifth, but not yet."

"And we _know_ it could happen."

"I know."

"Give me that baby and go," she insisted.

"Alright," Callie replied. "But at this point, it's going to be positive. We know that. We're waiting for our negative and _then_ our positive."

"Yes," she smiled as she took Baby Caleb back from her. "Now go."

"You cannot get excited over this test," Callie said. "This isn't going to end well, is it?"

"Our hopes are up anyway, Callie. In my mind, you're having my baby in forty weeks. I'm going to be a little bit let down no matter what."

"True," she said. "We're crazy. We're doctors."

"And excited mommies," she said. "Just do it before I change my mind!"


	24. Try, Try, And Try Again

**I'm sorry for any confusion I may have created tonight. I accidentally uploaded a chapter for another story (Against All Odds) here. I had to delete it. However, now both stories have new updates. Enjoy :)**

* * *

When Callie did not get pregnant that cycle, they simply started another one right away. She had been testing and she had never gotten a positive after the trigger shot was out of her system, so they knew what they were dealing with when they got the blood work results. They weren't too let down because they had only been trying for a month so far. This was normal.

When it didn't work the next month, they started to become a little more discouraged. Still, they knew that it wasn't a really that big of a deal. They had still had only tried two IUIs.

"I would really like to schedule at least two inseminations this cycle," Dr. Griffin suggested. "We might want to get a little more aggressive. Doctors usually move to IVF after three or four failed IUIs and I don't even want you to have to consider that, since it's a lot more involved. Unless that's something you're interested in."

"No, thanks," Arizona quickly replied. "We would not like her on even more fertility drugs."

"I'm not going to have eight babies," Callie laughed. "Relax."

"Multiples freak me out," she said. "The risk goes up with IVF."

"So how many IUIs do you want to do per cycle?" Callie asked.

"You purchased four vials of sperm, right?" the doctor replied. "We've used two. How about we use the other two this month?"

"Okay," Callie nodded. "What days?"

"We'll do one the day you do the trigger shot and one the day that you ovulate," she explained. "Hopefully that maximizes your chances."

"Good," she smiled.

"You might want to purchase more sperm," she suggested.

"In case this doesn't work? Can't we wait to find out this cycle?" Arizona questioned. "Our donor's still donating."

"You can, but many of my patients like to have at least a few vials in reserve even if they get pregnant."

"I'm not following," Arizona said, puzzled as to why they would need more sperm if Callie got pregnant this month.

"She's saying just in case we want more kids with the same donor someday," Callie told her.

"Ha, you're funny!" Arizona laughed. "Two is it. I mean, obviously if this gives us twins we're not picking our favourite or anything, but we're not _trying_ for a third."

"And what if we change our minds?" she wondered. "I'm fine with two, but what if one day we want a third?"

"Why does it have to have the same donor?" she asked. "Sofia has a _dad_ and this kid won't. I think they'll notice. It won't matter."

"True."

"Plus, as long as you're married to me, you're not trying for number three."

Callie smiled. "I know. I just said 'what if?'"

"Okay," Dr. Griffin said. "Now that that's been established..."

"You don't think there's a problem or anything, do you?" Callie wondered. "A reason I haven't gotten pregnant?"

"Callie, you got pregnant with Sofia –" Arizona started.

"But something could have gotten blocked since then," she said.

"True."

"I really don't think that's the case, but there are tests that we can do to put your mind at ease if you want," Dr. Griffin said.

"Should we?" Callie asked her wife.

"It's you that would have to go through them," she said. "You decide."

* * *

Callie thought it over all day. There wasn't really any negative to getting the tests done. If they found some kind of blockage or something, they could correct it. If not, then they would know that everything was fine and they just hadn't gotten pregnant yet because it wasn't the right time.

"Sofia, where did you get this toy?" she asked as she tossed a new rubber duck into the bathtub.

"Where do you think?" Arizona asked, coming into the bathroom.

"Mark," she said. "Why isn't it at Mark's place then?"

"She's been carrying it around with her since he bought it yesterday," she said. "It even went to daycare today."

Callie laughed. "Do you really love your new duck?"

"Yep," she nodded.

"What do ducks say?" she questioned.

"Lellow," she replied.

"He is yellow, but what does he say? Quack, quack?"

"Pease, too," she nodded.

"And please?" she asked, giving her a kiss before she put her into the tub. "He's such a polite duck!"

Sofia laughed.

"What do you want for dinner, Madre?" Mommy wondered.

Arizona had already fed Sofia, but Callie had worked late, so the moms had yet to eat. Fish sticks shaped like fish had been on the menu for their little lady, but Arizona was guessing that her wife wouldn't find those quite so delicious.

"Don't we have one of those frozen lasagnas in the freezer?" Callie suggested.

"I'm offering to cook for you and you want a frozen meal?"

"I'm exhausted and hungry," she said. "I want something that won't take forever to make."

"Okay," she said.

"And I think I am going to have Griffin run some tests."

"Sounds good."

* * *

As predicted, all of Callie's tests came back normal. She proceeded to do two separate inseminations that cycle. Seven days after the last one, Callie found Mark and Arizona both playing with Sofia in the daycare when she went up.

"Red," Sofia told Mark, handing him a red ball. "Dada, ball."

"It's my red ball?" he asked. "Thank you!"

"Hey, Sof," Callie smiled.

With that, Sofia walked off. She had apparently decided to go play with a few of her friends over at the grocery store center.

Arizona laughed.

"Not that kid," Mark said as he watched Sofia steal a few items from the little boy's grocery cart. "He picks his nose."

"They're two," Callie said. "They all pick their noses. Shouldn't we be more concerned with the fact that she just took that kid's stuff?"

"He doesn't seem to care," Arizona replied.

"We're such great parents," she laughed. "Arizona, didn't you have a cleft palette kid for Mark to look at?"

"Oh, he –"

"He in the N.I.C.U.?" Mark asked, getting up. "I'll go take a look."

Callie smiled as soon as he was gone.

"I discharged that baby. The parents have picked out a doctor at another hospital to operate."

"I know," she replied. "I just wanted him out of here so that I could tell you that I just took two tests and they were both negative. The trigger shot's out of my system."

"Good," she smiled. "Now we just wait for a positive."

"Exactly," she replied as they watched Sofia trade a plastic can of soup for some plastic broccoli. "We could have two of those soon."

"I'm trying not to get my hopes up. Just because we did two IUIs this cycle doesn't mean it's a guarantee."

"I have a good feeling," she told her.

"You feel pregnant?"

"I don't know about that, but I do feel hopeful. More so than before."

"Good."

"How do you feel about the na -?"

"If this is going to lead to a name discussion, don't start," she stopped her. "If there's a baby, it has to look like a baby before we name it."

"Fine," she pouted.

* * *

"What is this?" Callie asked, pointing to her nose.

Mommy wasn't home and Sofia was refusing to lay down until she could get a goodnight kiss from her. Typically this wasn't an issue – especially because Sofia didn't live with all three of her parents at the same time – but Arizona had told her that she would be home before bedtime. That promise had had to be broken when a very sick little girl came into the ER, but Sofia didn't understand. Now Callie was trying to keep the little one entertained until Arizona finally did get home.

"No," she said.

"Nose, yes. Where's Sofia's nose?"

She pointed to it.

"Correct!" Callie praised. "High five."

Sofia went for a fist pump instead.

"Oh, fist pump?" she smiled. "Okay. What other body parts do you know?"

Sofia lifted up Madre's shirt and pointed to her belly button. "Poke!" she said.

"Who taught you that?" she laughed. "Did Mommy teach you 'belly button?'"

"Lex," she replied.

"Oh, Lexie did?" Callie asked. "Does Lexie hang out with you lots at Daddy's place? Yeah, right?"

"Yep," she nodded.

"She's nice, isn't she?"

"Lex pay."

"She plays with you?"

Sofia lifted Madre's shirt back up. "Bell ba!"

"Belly button," she corrected. "Can you say 'belly button?'"

"Bell ba...tin!" she replied. "Maday bell batin?"

"Madre's belly button," she nodded. "Yep. Sofia, do you think maybe there's a baby in my belly?"

She gasped. Of course, she didn't know what this actually meant, but she was excited because her madre seemed to be.

"There might be!" she told her.

"No," she said.

"You don't think so?" she asked. "We'll see. Be a little optimistic, Sofia!"

She put Madre's shirt down.

"Buh bye, bell batin," she said.


	25. Surprise

"Was that some delicious breakfast?" Callie heard her wife ask down in the kitchen.

She had worked all night, so she wasn't expected back at the hospital until later in the afternoon, but sometimes Arizona didn't realize how her voice carried when she was in a good mood. It was like the joy came bursting out of her and filled the whole house with its wonderful sound.

The Latina yawned as she got out of bed. Arizona would be headed out the door any minute now and she needed to be awake for Sofia.

"Good morning," Arizona smiled, placing a kiss on her wife's lips when she came downstairs. "Sofia just ate some yogurt and a banana and now she's finishing off her milk. Do you want me to get her dressed and bring her to daycare now or...?"

"No," she replied. "It's fine. We'll hang out."

"Okay," she said. "In that case, I think I'll leave a little early. I'm teaching a skills lab this morning."

"Alright," Callie smiled.

Arizona gave her another kiss and then placed one on Sofia's cheek as well. The little lady let out a giggle as she continued to drink from her sip cup.

"What?" Mommy asked.

"Hi," she smiled.

"Mommy's gotta go," she told her. "Take it easy on Madre today, alright? She's very sleepy."

"Yes," Sofia agreed.

"Thank you," she smiled, giving her one more kiss. "Bye!"

Sofia waved until Mommy was out the door. Then she requested that Madre let her down so that she could finish her milk while watching TV. Callie wasn't such a fan of this idea, so they compromised. Sofia started working on a puzzle instead.

"I'll be right back, okay?" she asked.

"Back?" Sofia repeated. "Maday?"

"I'll be in the bathroom," she told her. "Drink your milk and work on the puzzle."

"Yep."

"Thanks," she smiled, giving her a kiss.

Callie went into their downstairs bathroom and opened up a box of two pregnancy tests. She took both of them and waited. She was twelve days post-ovulation today. While she waited, she opened up another box of tests. She had made this one appear unused, but really it contained the last six days' worth of tests that she had taken. On each one, she had written a date so that she could compare them to each other.

She began to lay them out on the countertop. The first two were positive. The "trigger shot" hadn't left her system yet at that point. The next four were negative. These proved that the artificial hormones were no longer affecting the results. They hadn't for either of those two days. Next, she took another look at the test from the ninth day after she had ovulated. There was an extremely faint second line. Day ten's was darker. Day eleven's was even darker than that.

Even though Arizona and Dr. Griffin were sure that the only foolproof way to know was a blood test, Callie was convinced. The progression of the lines was enough. If today's tests came out even darker, she would officially be ready to tell her wife the news that she had cautiously been keeping to herself for a few days now. After their failed cycles, Arizona had stopped requesting that Callie take tests. If she wanted to, that was fine, but Mommy was also okay with waiting.

Sure enough, this morning's tests showed lines that were darker from the ones on yesterday's batch. She would still need to go into Dr. Griffin's office in a couple of days to get her official blood work done, but there was absolutely no reason to believe that she wasn't pregnant.

"Mo' milk?" she heard Sofia ask from the living room.

"Sof, come here!" she called out as she opened the door.

"Mo' milk?" she asked again as she arrived in the bathroom doorway.

"I'll get you more in one second," she promised. "I want to tell you something first."

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Remember how I told you that there might be a baby in my belly?" she asked her.

"Baby?" she asked.

"There _is_ a baby in my belly," she told her. "You're going to be a big sister, Sofia!"

"Huh?"

"Mommy and I are going to have two kids soon," Callie explained. "Sofia and a new baby."

"Oh," she said, still with a puzzled look on her face. "Mo' milk?"

Callie laughed. Clearly Sofia didn't quite understand. This whole transition was going to take some time. Luckily they had a whole pregnancy to get her used to the idea. Even at that, she probably wouldn't completely comprehend this whole "baby" thing until her sibling arrived.

"Let's get you more milk," Callie said as she put away all of the pregnancy tests – planning to show them to her wife as proof later – and washed her hands.

"Maday?"

"Yes, Sofia?" she asked.

"Pity," she said. "Pity Maday."

"I'm pretty?" she asked. "Sofia, I just got out of bed. I haven't had a shower yet."

"Pity," she insisted.

"Thanks," Callie smiled. "Let's get that milk."

"Yeah."

"How are we going to tell Mommy about Baby? Should we go to the store and buy Baby something to show Mommy?"

"Yeah."

"This is so exciting, Sofia!"

* * *

Callie and Sofia did go to the store and purchase something for the baby that morning. However, Callie chose not to bring it to work to show Arizona. Instead, she wanted to surprise her afterwards. The only problem was that they ended up working together, which made it very hard not to say anything. They had been in the OR together for two hours at this point and Callie was struggling to keep her mouth shut.

"You're unusually cheerful today," Arizona noticed.

"What?" she asked. "I'm not usually happy?"

"No, you are, but still. You barely got any sleep. Did you and Sofia have a really good morning or something?" she wondered.

Sofia was at such a fun age. Sure, the "terrible twos" had also hit, but when she was in a cooperative mood she was a blast these days. She was learning so much and turning into such a cool person. Arizona knew how much she loved getting to spend the day with her, so she assumed Callie was on the same toddler high.

"Yeah," she replied. "We went shopping."

"Shopping?"

"She's obsessed with that shopping center at daycare," she explained. "I thought she'd like it and I was so tired that if we didn't get out of the house I was going to fall asleep on her while she worked on a puzzle."

Only part of that was true, of course. That wasn't the reason for their shopping adventure, but she was exhausted today. Part of it was due to a lack of sleep, but she also thought that it was probably the first sign of a pregnancy symptom. She was used to getting very little sleep. This wasn't like that.

"She's so spoiled, though," Arizona said. "I'm all for making her happy, but she doesn't need a new toy every week."

"We only got a couple little things," she promised. "She doesn't get something new every week."

"Mark caves more than you realize," she smiled.

"Still. She's not bratty. She understands no. I told her no today plenty of times today and she only got a little upset once. Even when she did, it was over within less than a minute."

"Good," she replied. "I knew you were tired when I left. I'm glad you two still managed to have a good morning. The only thing that would've made it better was if I could've spent it with you."

"It was still pretty perfect."

* * *

Arizona was in their office that night doing a few minutes of research while she had the chance. Typically she and her wife would be playing with their little lady right now, but Sofia had gotten far too messy at dinner time. She needed a bath before playtime. Callie had offered to bathe her while Arizona finished up what she had to do.

It was then that Sofia came walking in to see Mommy. She was completely soaked, still dripping bath water all over the floor.

"Where's your towel, Sof?" she laughed.

Sofia had a hooded towel that she usually loved to wear, so this was slightly odd. She had never refused to put her favourite towel on after a bath.

"No," she told her. "Hi, Mama."

"Hi, Sofia," she smiled. "Let's go find your towel. Is it in the hamper? If it is, you can use a big girl towel tonight."

"Sof one," she said.

"You want yours?" she asked picking her up. "I know. Why didn't Madre dry you off? That silly Madre!"

"Oh, Maday!" Sofia giggled.

Arizona walked into the bathroom to find Callie taking all of their daughter's toys out of the tub. She didn't seem to even notice that they were there, let alone the fact that she hadn't put Sofia's towel on her.

"Where's her towel?" she asked.

"Oh, it's in the same spot behind the door . Can you grab it?"

"Why didn't –?"

It was then that Mommy noticed a difference with their usual setup. Sofia's towel was in its same spot, but hanging just above it – on a hook that had not been there that morning – was a tiny grey and white one that would only fit on the tiniest of tiny humans.

"Why? Wait. You're –?"

"Pregnant," Callie nodded as huge smiles spread across both of their faces. "Sofia and I bought that this morning for her new brother or sister."

"We're having another baby," she said, with the same joy that had been in her voice the night that she had first declared that Sofia was hers.

"Yeah," Callie said, giving her a kiss. "We are."

"Are you sure? You didn't get blood work done yet, did you?"

"No, but I'm sure. There are several days' worth of home pregnancy tests in the downstairs bathroom," she explained. "You can see the positives –"

"Trigger shot."

"I'm getting there," she laughed. "Then there are negatives. After that, I started getting positives that got progressively darker by the day. If I'm not pregnant, those are some horrible tests. I'll show you. There is definitely a baby in here."

"You've known? Before today?"

"I wanted to be sure," she explained. "And I wanted to surprise you. I didn't think I'd get the chance because we'd both be waiting for the blood work to come back, but it turns out that I got to."

"You definitely did," she laughed.

"Are you excited?"

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "Calliope, soon we'll have two kids. Two carseats in the car, two sets of little shoes at the door, two times the wonderful kisses..."

She smiled.

"Mama?" Sofia asked.

"Yes, Big Sister?" she answered.

"Cole," she said.

"You're cold?" she questioned. "Okay. Mommy'll get your towel. I saw our new baby's towel and I got a little distracted." She kissed her cheek. "I'm sorry."

Sofia pulled Baby's towel off the hook as Mommy grabbed hers. She looked at it closely as if she wasn't really sure what all of the fuss was about.

"We picked that for the baby, didn't we?" Madre reminded her.

"No good," she decided.

"It's not?" Arizona asked as she wrapped Sofia up in her towel.

"Sof big."

"It's too little for you?" she smiled. "That's because it's not for you. It's for a _baby_, Sof!"

"Baby?"

"Remember how you picked it?" Callie said again. "You wanted to pick the pink and purple one, but then we decided grey and white was probably best. In case you get a brother who's not so fond of your favourite colours."

"Boys can like pink, too," Arizona said. "Right, Sofia?"

"No boy," the toddler decided.

"Oh, you think Baby's a girl? How are you so sure?"

"Sof."

"Because you are?" Callie replied. "I think you might be confused, huh? You're not the baby we're talking about. You're our baby, but now we'll have another one!"

"And it doesn't matter what we get," Arizona smiled. "We just want a healthy baby and a healthy madre, don't we?"

"Sof," Sofia added.

"And a healthy Sofia, too. Everybody in our family," Callie said.

"Sounds good!" Arizona agreed.


	26. Off To A Rough Start

By the day that Callie was supposed to get her official blood work done, her pregnancy symptoms were already in full swing. Arizona awoke that morning without her wife beside her. Sofia was at Mark's, so she knew that Callie hadn't gotten up with her.

"Calliope?" she asked as she got up.

She found her in their bathroom leaning over the toilet bowl. She had been up a few times throughout the night to be sick. Luckily, this round appeared to be just about over for now. However, she still felt absolutely terrible. Technically she wasn't even supposed to know that she was expecting yet and already felt so nauseous. She was already hoping for the first trimester to fly by.

Arizona went and got her a glass of water. When she returned, Callie was just sitting next to the toilet not sure if it was a good idea to get up right away. The blond sat down beside her and handed over the water as she slowly rubbed circles onto her shoulder.

"Drink that."

"I'll probably just throw it up."

"Calliope..."

"I know," she replied. "Baby needs me to stay hydrated. I will. I need baby to relax. I'm not even supposed to know that it exists yet."

"Well, we do," Arizona said, putting her hand on her wife's stomach. "C'mon. We don't have Sofia this morning and we get to sleep in a bit because we're going to Griffin's before work and that's not until eight thirty. Let's go back to bed."

"Just so that Baby can make me have to get up to vomit again?"

"So you're going to camp out here until June?"

Callie smiled. That was the first time that anyone had actually mentioned a rough idea of her due date. She realized that this baby would be arriving within a few weeks of Sofia's third birthday. That seemed like perfect timing to her.

"No," she said taking a sip of her water. "But oh my God, if I'm miserable now, what is June going to be like?"

"This time you'll have me there to help in those last few weeks," she told her.

"Yep."

"Are we waiting to find out the gender this time, too?" Arizona asked. "Because I didn't exactly get the surprise. Or at least not the way I thought I would. I hate to admit it, but a lot of that day is a little hazy."

"Well, yeah. You'd just woken up from a coma," Callie replied. "That's understandable. And yes. We're waiting to find out the gender."

"Sounds good."

"Let's go back to bed, Madre."

"I think we should just stay there," she yawned. "I'm tired and sick and –"

"You're not sick," she told her as she helped her up. "You're pregnant."

"And I've been puking all night."

"I know," she said. "But going to work will take your mind off of it and we need to get that blood test done."

"Today? We already know I'm pregnant. I'll reschedule."

"The blood work will tell us more than that, though. We need to make sure that you're healthy and that Baby's healthy. Griffin will send your blood work to your OB, so unless you want two blood tests..."

"You're right," she said. "I know that, but ugh!"

They headed back to bed for just a few extra minutes since Callie was feeling bad and they didn't have to get their toddler up.

"You're probably not going to like me asking this," Arizona said as she held her wife. "But what do you want for breakfast?"

"What are you going to make me eat?" she asked. "Because I know the baby needs me to, but I don't want anything."

"How about this?" she asked. "How about we grab something on the way to work? You'll need it after your blood work."

"Okay."

* * *

"I take it you know something I don't?" Dr. Griffin asked when she walked in and saw the giant smiles on both ladies' faces.

"We do," Arizona said. "There are four days' worth of positive tests in our bathroom and Calliope's morning sickness started last night."

"Can we not bring up the morning sickness? It doesn't help," her wife replied.

"I know you know this, but eat often. Small meals often. It'll help," the doctor encouraged.

"I'm a surgeon and a mom," Callie said. "Often is hard."

"We'll make it work," Arizona said. "We made it through all of this with Sofia."

"Yeah," she agreed.

"Well, let's get this blood work out of the way," Dr. Griffin said. "Who am I sending the results to?"

Lucy Fields no longer worked at the hospital. Therefore, they had decided that Dr. Jana Nicholas was going to be Callie's obstetrician this time around. Her qualifications were impressive and they trusted her.

"Dr. Nicholas," Callie said as she extended her arm.

"Okay."

"I referred somebody else to her yesterday and she told me she's actually got a really light case load at the moment."

"Good," Arizona smiled. "Callie likes to take up a ton of time in the OBs office."

"Callie is hormonal," her wife replied. "I can't help it, okay?"

"I'm just teasing," she smiled. "I love how you obsess. Just like how I obsess over making sure you eat and sleep and exercise and get your vitamins."

"I swear she thinks _I'm _the baby," Callie told the doctor as she began to draw her blood.

"Sometimes it's good to be taken care of," she replied.

* * *

Clearly Callie's blood test results showed that she was pregnant. Even though she didn't need an appointment just yet because Dr. Nicholas didn't usually feel the need to start seeing patients until around the eighth week, they decided to stop by her office a few days later.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you know there's not much I can do right now, right?" she smiled.

She wasn't trying to say that she didn't want to see them. In fact, she had the opposite reputation. Her patients were always welcome in her office at any time and she really did mean that. However, it was so early on in Callie's pregnancy that there wasn't much for her to say about it.

"We know," Arizona said. "It's just that her first appointment isn't until seven weeks. We know that's still a week earlier than you typically start seeing women, but still. We just couldn't wait that long and we work here so it's practically torture."

She laughed. "Well, according to the blood work, you were approximately four weeks and four days pregnant when you got it done. Which means you're about five weeks today. Congratulations."

"Already?" Callie asked.

"Well, gestation is based on the first day of your last menstrual cycle. Technically, you're not pregnant for the first two, but we use them to count."

"We're doctors," she said. "I know that part. I just didn't think conception would happen four days after the second insemination."

"It's possible."

"And it's a good thing we did two then," Arizona said.

"We'll get a better idea at your first real appointment," the doctor told them. "That's just based off of one thing."

"Yeah," Callie agreed. "But still, if it's right, Baby has a heartbeat already. Not one we can see or anything, but it's beating."

"Yes," the doctor smiled. "And I'd say you're due around June twenty-sixth if that is correct."

She knew that this was really their reason for stopping by now. All expectant parents wanted to know that due date as soon as possible.

"Two summer babies," Arizona smiled. "So much fun."

"How old is your first?" Dr. Nicholas asked.

"Twenty-seven months," Callie replied. "Her name's Sofia."

She smiled.

"Everyone says this about their kid, but she really is the best one," Arizona told her. "I work with them. I would know."

She laughed. "And you're not the least bit biased, right?"

"Oh, no," she joked.

"Any symptoms so far?" the doctor asked.

"Nausea," Callie replied. "Every single day this week. It gets better in the afternoon, but it's horrible in the morning and evening."

"Hang in there," she said. "It gets better for most women."

"Thank God," she replied. "Because it's not making me the most fun to be around."

"I think your hormones are doing that all on their own," Arizona said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she snapped. "Okay, maybe," she admitted when she realized what she had just done.

"It's all normal," the doctor assured them.

"I know," she said. "But I already feel like this baby's taken over my body. Already."

"Ah, the joys of pregnancy," she replied. "That happens. Luckily you only have about thirty-five more weeks of it."

"June seems so far away."

"It's really not," Arizona smiled. "Sofia and I'll take such good care of you and it'll fly by."

"It usually does with second babies," the doctor said. "You'll be busier than the first time around."

"Yeah," Callie said.

* * *

"Robbins, what's wrong with your wife?" Mark asked.

"Nothing, why?" she replied as she headed to a patient room.

Hiding this pregnancy wasn't going to be nearly as easy as they thought. Callie's symptoms were in full swing and all of their friends were doctors. At some point, one of them was bound to start figuring everything out. Still, they weren't ready to share their news right now.

"I showed her this picture of Sofia that I took last night and she freaked out on me," he told her, showing her a picture that he had on his phone.

In it, Sofia had clearly dressed herself. She had a pair of bright orange pants that had been a favourite lately since Halloween was coming up. However, paired with these was a pink shirt with a rabbit on it that said "Every Bunny Loves Me." She also had lime green socks on. It wasn't exactly the most well put together ensemble.

"Look how proud she looks of herself," he smiled. "She peed right through to her carseat on the way home and I decided to let her decide what to change into. We didn't even go anywhere last night. I don't see the problem, but Torres definitely did. I thought I was just giving Sofia some independence, but I guess that's too much for Madre."

"It's adorable," Arizona said. "It's probably a good thing you stayed in, but she does look really proud of her pick."

"Tell your wife that," he replied.

"She...just go with it, Mark."

"Usually I get Torres, but I have no idea what's up with her."

"What's up with who?" Teddy asked as she came up.

"Callie doesn't think this is hilariously adorable," he said as he showed her.

She laughed. "She looks so happy with herself."

"Thank you!"

"Just don't bug Callie, okay?" Arizona asked. "Leave her be for a while."

"Okay?" he replied. "But listen. Can you take Sof tonight? Lexie wants to go to dinner and she actually used the word 'date' this time. I'd really, really appreciate not having to pass this one up."

"Sure," she smiled. "No problem."

* * *

Arizona expected to come home to the typical scene that welcomed her whenever Sofia was at their place. Whenever Callie got home first, the two of them would usually start working on dinner for Mommy. Sofia was practicing numbers and colours and Callie was able to get things done.

"Hello, my –"

Arizona stopped when she opened the door. Instead of this, she saw something very different today. Today both of her girls were sitting on the couch together. Callie was in tears and Sofia was crying as well as she wiped them off of Madre's face.

"What happened?"

Then she noticed that the wall across from them – as well as parts of Sofia's clothing – were covered in paint. Sofia must have helped herself and had a little painting party when her Callie was busy doing something else.

"I fell asleep," Callie cried. "I didn't mean it, but I was really tired. I laid down for just a second while she was playing with one of her dolls and I woke up to this!"

"Calliope, it's just paint. It's water soluble. We'll just wash it off. If it doesn't come out of the clothes then we can just use those whenever she's going to get messy. Still, it should come right out."

"I know that," she said. "But I overreacted and yelled at her. We don't yell at her. I scared her and now she' s crying and I'm crying and..."

She sat down next to them and took Sofia from Madre.

"Did you paint today?" she asked.

"Maday?"

"Madre's just hormonal," she said. "That means that she's going to cry lots. She's not really that mad at you. It's okay. She loves you lots. A little paint isn't going to change that, okay?"

"I tried telling her I wasn't that mad, but she just kept crying," Callie replied.

"Because you are."

"I know."

"Sof, what do you say we go clean up?" Arizona asked. "Madre's okay. She'll be happy if we help clean up, okay?"

"Yeah," she decided.

"First we'll get you out of those clothes," she told her as they walked away from the couch.

The little lady removed her shirt and put it on the ground. She had been learning how to dress and undress herself lately and she knew that she needed to take her clothing off if it was messy.

"Oh, we're starting now," she said, picking it up. "Hold on, okay?"

"Oh."

"Did you make a big mess today?"

"Yeah, Mama," she smiled. "Pity!"

"Are you supposed to open your paint by yourself?" she asked. "What's the rule?"

"Uhh..."

"Ask first, right?"

"Oh."

"You need to paint on paper from now on, okay?"

"No house," she agreed.

"Not all over the house."

"Maday sa'"

"Madre's okay," she promised. "She just got upset. When we clean up, we'll make her dinner and she'll be so happy again. Right, Madre?"

"Sounds good," Callie said. "I can't believe I yelled over paint."

"We all have those days," she said. "Don't beat yourself up over it. Sofia's okay. Right, Sof?"

"Yep," she nodded. "No house."

"No painting all over the house. Yes."

"Dada?"

"Or Daddy's."


	27. Excitement

"I don't like these ones," Callie decided, putting a few pieces of a particular Halloween candy to the side.

In the week since Halloween, Callie had developed quite a craving for the candies that her toddler had collected that day. Luckily she had gotten far too much candy for a two-year-old to ever eat before it went bad and she didn't even notice that Madre had been digging in. She was happy with whatever candy she was given.

"You mean Sofia can actually have them?" Arizona joked.

"Oh, she's had plenty and there's still a lot left."

"And there are still thirty-three weeks left in your pregnancy, too," she smiled.

"Can you believe I'm seven weeks today?" she asked. "Our first real appointment is tomorrow, Arizona. In less than twenty-four hours we get to see him or her."

They had been anxiously awaiting that day for the last two weeks. Surprisingly, it had come rather quickly. They had both expected time to crawl since they were so excited about it, but it hadn't. Even with Callie's morning sickness and exhaustion, time was moving quickly so far. They could only hope that this would continue.

"I know," she smiled. "After that, can we tell people? I'm assuming you can't hide it for very much longer at work with all of the nausea and everything. Plus, when I sent our parents those pictures of Sofia in her costume last week, my mom replied saying she's so big and she misses when she was tiny. It's like she knows."

"She doesn't know."

"I know she doesn't _know_," she replied. "But still. After we see a heartbeat, the miscarriage rate goes down. Not as much as it would after twelve weeks, but let's just start telling people."

"You were the one that insisted we not say anything."

"I know, but it's been harder than I thought it would be," she admitted. "Especially at work."

"Well, yeah," she said. "I'm peeing every two seconds and I constantly feel like I'm going to throw up. I'm sure somebody's noticed."

"Right."

Just then, Sofia woke up from her afternoon nap. Mommy went and got her since she figured that Madre wasn't quite done with her latest chocolate fix. When they returned, Sofia was in her Halloween costume. She had chosen it all by herself and she was still obsessed with it even though Halloween was over now.

"Again?" Callie asked.

"Apparently," Arizona said. "She insisted."

"That's getting real old, Sofia," Callie told her.

"But it's also adorable," Arizona smiled.

"True."

"Yum?" Sofia smiled, reaching out her hand when she saw the candy.

"You can have one piece," Callie told her. "Madre's done too. Well, until after dinner. Maybe we'll have a little more then. Even Baby needs a little dessert."

"Baby?" she asked.

"Yeah, Baby!" she told her. "But we also have to keep Baby nice and healthy, right?"

"Yep," she nodded. "Pity?"

"Is the baby pretty?" Arizona replied. "Well, yes!"

"Tomorrow Mama and I get to see the baby," Callie told her.

"Do you think our baby will be a boy baby or a girl baby?" Arizona asked the big sister.

They had been asking her this every few days, but her answer had always varied.

"Puckin," she said, pointing to her costume. She couldn't exactly pronounce its name.

"It'll be a pumpkin?" Callie asked, tickling her. "No! You're such a goof! Can you wear something else tomorrow?"

"No."

"How about if it's pink and pretty?"

Sofia didn't reply right away. Instead, she looked over at her mommy.

"I think that will be perfect!" Arizona encouraged.

"Yeah?"

* * *

"Now for the fun part," Dr. Nicholas smiled as she turned the monitor towards them so that they could see.

Even though Callie had been exhausted that morning, she had gotten up bright and early without much protest. She couldn't wait to get to her appointment so that they could see the baby for the first time. She was sure that it was healthy, but the conformation would be nice.

"Okay," Arizona said as she first saw the image. "Only one. Right?"

The doctor laughed. "Right. Not a fan of multiples?"

"Other people's twins and triplets are perfect," she said. "But we're busy co-parenting one kid. Another one is doable. Another two or three would have been a little rough."

"The heartbeat looks strong," Callie smiled.

"Very much so," the doctor agreed. "Baby's a great size for seven weeks, too."

"Good," Arizona smiled. "If we wanted to start telling people now that would be okay, right?"

"There is always a miscarriage risk. As you know, it goes down after the first trimester, which is why most women wait for that. But it does still decrease after there's a heartbeat, so it's not a bad idea or anything. Waiting the full twelve weeks can be hard."

"It's amazing that something that small can have a beating heart," Callie said. "Right?"

"It kind of feels like yesterday that it was Sofia's heartbeat we were seeing up there," Arizona agreed.

"Next time you come in, we'll be able to hear it. It can be tricky to find with the Dopper at this point, so I usually stick to just seeing it for the first visit," Dr. Nicholas said.

"I wish we could hear it, but seeing it is perfect too," Callie smiled.

"Any questions?" she asked.

"I lost a pound this week," Callie said.

"We've discussed this," Arizona told her.

"I know, but I..it worries me still. I never had a week that I lost weight with Sofia. I haven't actually put on any weight yet."

"The majority of the weight you gain will be in the second half of the pregnancy," the doctor assured her. "And it's not unheard of for women to lose a little weight at first. Morning sickness doesn't help with this. I'm going to guess that you're sicker than you were the first time."

"For sure."

"Don't worry," she smiled. "Let me keep track of that. If I'm not happy, I'll say so. Otherwise, eat as healthy as you can and just let your baby grow however it grows. Just like kids, fetuses have growth spurts too. You'll gain. Trust me."

"Okay."

"Most women think they're gaining too much."

"Oh, she'll get to that point too. She did last time," Arizona smiled.

"Well, you have a healthy little one in there and I was correct about your due date" she told them. "I'll print you a picture."

"I can't wait until its big enough to see all of the features," Arizona smiled.

"Me neither," Callie agreed.

* * *

As tempted as they were, they didn't tell a single co-worker their news all day. They planned to tell them soon, but they wanted the grandparents to be the first to know. Unfortunately they couldn't tell them in person, so they had to settle for the next best option.

"Mija, come here," Callie told their daughter that night.

What had started out as a fun little before dinner reading session with Mommy had quickly become a mess of books all over the living area. Oh, well. They loved that Sofia was so into her books.

She looked up from one of them. "Nah," she replied.

"Yes," Arizona laughed. "Let's go see! Madre has something cool. Can we tidy your books up? We'll make a pile and then we'll put them back in your room when we go back up there."

"Oh," she replied.

This took some time, but Sofia did catch on and start stacking her books into a pile. Once that was finished, she went over and sat on Callie's lap. Madre showed her the baby's ultrasound picture and she simply looked at it for about a minute before they said anything else.

"That right there is a baby," Callie told her, knowing that she wouldn't understand, but still saying the words. "Your new brother or sister. That's Baby's first picture."

"Baby?"

"Baby!" Arizona smiled. "Does Baby look just like you? What do you think?"

She laughed.

"Can we take a picture of you holding Baby's picture up?" Callie asked.

"Yep," she nodded.

Arizona went and got the camera and Callie helped Sofia to hold the picture without damaging it. This would be a simple, yet fun way to tell the grandparents. Sure, they wouldn't really see Baby's picture up close, but they would get the idea.

"Smile ladies!" Arizona replied. "Say 'Baby!'"

* * *

Once the picture was taken they sent it to the grandparents. Just as they finished up dinner, Arizona's cell phone started ringing. It was her mom.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Does that picture mean what I think it does?!" she asked.

"It does," Arizona smiled.

"We didn't even realize you were trying," she told her. "You were trying, right?"

"Considering the alternative would mean that my wife cheated on me and I doubt I'd tell you like that, yes, we were trying," Arizona laughed. "We just didn't want to announce that we were trying. Calliope's about seven weeks and your newest grandchild has a perfect little beating heart already."

"Congratulations!" she smiled. "Your father would like a grandson, of course, but I think another little girl would be lovely!"

"'Of course?'" she asked, putting the phone on speaker now. "We get what we get and we'll be thrilled with whatever it is."

"Of course," she agreed. "Your father just wants another Robbins man around."

Callie smiled. Everyone knew that deep down, nobody really cared about gender. A little Robbins man would be great, but the Robbins women were also pretty special. However, this wasn't the part of the conversation that Callie really noticed. She loved that Arizona's parents completely considered this child a Robbins even though she was the one carrying it. They felt the same way towards Sofia. Their grandchildren were theirs no matter how they came to be, but it was always great to hear.

"We'll see," Arizona smiled. "When it's born."

"Which will be...?"

"I'm due June twenty-sixth," Callie explained.

"Perfect timing," Barbara commented. "Sofia'll be just about three."

"We've actually been trying for a few months, but that will work out nicely," Arizona agreed.

Callie's phone started to ring as well. Hearing it, Sofia looked up from the plate of food that she was still somewhat picking at.

"Hi?" she asked.

"It's Abuelo," Callie said. "Would you like to say 'hi?' Tell him 'I'm going to be a big sister!'"

Sofia clapped.

"Yay!" Arizona laughed. "So exciting, huh?"


	28. Eleven Weeks In

**A/N: Deleted the Chapter 28 that won't show up for some weird reason and re-uploaded it. Same exact chapter. No one is missing anything. Hopefully you guys can read (and enjoy) this. No idea what the issue was. Thank you to the person who let me know that there was a problem!  
**

* * *

The next month was a busy one. Spending a week with Arizona's parents at Thanksgiving had been great. Callie's dad had been unable to come, but he had promised to be there for Christmas so that was okay. It was still a wonderful time. However, Callie's symptoms were still in full swing – showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon – and they couldn't wait to get to hear Baby's heartbeat. Finally, today was the day.

Arizona found her wife in the kitchen staring into the wide open fridge.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

"Trying to decide what to eat," she replied. "All I want is ice cream."

"Probably not the best choice for breakfast," she said. "What about a nice cheesy omelette?"

"Ew," she replied. "No."

"I thought you were craving cheese."

"Apparently that was just yesterday," she replied. "Now Baby seems to think cheese is disgusting."

"If it wasn't my kid, I don't think I'd be too crazy about Baby," the blond joked, giving Callie a morning kiss as she shut the fridge door and turned around. "It's not so nice to my wife."

Callie laughed.

"Only twenty-nine more weeks," she replied. "It'll be worth it, even if I have to force myself to eat the whole time."

"Mark was trying to convince me it's twins yesterday at work," she told her. "Because intense morning sickness can sometimes indicate multiples."

"We've seen one baby," Callie said. "That's it."

"I know," Arizona replied. "But you have to admit that that would explain this."

Really, so many things could explain Callie's harsh symptoms. Just because things hadn't been this bad at this point with Sofia didn't mean much. This pregnancy was unique to this baby and she would just have to manage the symptoms as much as possible. She was eleven weeks today and the morning sickness hadn't even eased up yet. Luckily, she had managed to gain a few pounds over the last three weeks, so at least that was starting to go well.

"Yeah, but this is just one baby who can't take it easy."

"It's just excited to be in there," Arizona said, placing a hand on Callie's stomach. "It hears its crazy sister out here and it can't wait to have some fun with her."

"It already hears, huh?" she laughed.

"Our children are very advanced," Mommy decided. "Little geniuses."

"How about I go wake Sister up while you get breakfast?" Callie asked. "Nothing looks good to me, but maybe that'll work. I hate having to wake her up, but we have a big day ahead of us and she somehow slept in passed her usual time."

"Are we bringing her to your appointment?" she questioned. "We could."

"We should," Callie smiled. "I know she won't understand the whole baby thing, but still. It's all part of it and she can hear the heartbeat with us."

"Yeah."

* * *

"Pease, Mama?" Sofia asked after their pancake breakfast.

She was pointing to two little gifts in the center of the table. When Grandma and Grandpa had been there, Grandma had done plenty of shopping for things for her grandchildren. Of course, Arizona thought that her mother had gone overboard. Still, she and Callie decided that they could use this as an opportunity. They wrapped up each item – ten little things for each child in total – and planned to present these gifts to Sofia over the next few weeks. They did this because they didn't want to overdo it and give Sofia so many new toys at once so close to the holidays, but it was also a way that they could help her prepare for the baby. Each time that she opened a gift of her own, she would also "help" Baby open one of theirs. Whether or not she fully understood, they could still play up this helpfulness and use it to remind her that she would be such a great big sister. It would also allow them another chance to talk about Sofia's new sibling. Of course, this could backfire and Sofia could decide not to share her brother or sister's things, but they hoped that she would like becoming a helpful sister. Luckily, none of Baby's things were too likely to be appealing to her, since they were mostly clothing items.

Arizona slid both gifts closer as Callie wiped syrup off of Sofia's face.

"This one's for you," she told her, pointing to one of them. "It's from Grandma and Grandpa."

Sofia tore into the gift once Mommy started the corner for her. She thought it was pretty cool that presents were around on a normal weekday.

"Oh!" she gasped when she unwrapped a colouring book and some toddler-friendly crayons that would be easier for her little hands to grasp.

"You can make pictures," Callie smiled. "That'll be fun, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Baby needs your help again," Arizona said after her daughter checked out the book for a few minutes. "Remember last week when you opened a present with Grandma and you got to help Baby open theirs?"

"Yeah."

"Want to help again?" she questioned. "Baby's still in Madre's belly. It can't do it yet."

"Uh oh."

"Uh oh," Arizona repeated. "But you can help!"

"Maday," Sofia suggested.

"I should help?" Callie asked.

Maybe their plan wasn't working out so well. At least they had eight more tries. Sofia had been very proud to "help" the first time, so this was probably no big deal.

"Yeah."

"Let's see what Baby got," she said, opening it up.

She pulled out a package of socks. Each pair was a different colour. Sofia's eyes lit up. They had been teaching her her colours and she liked to show off when she got the chance.

"What colour socks does our new baby have now?" Arizona asked.

"Pity!" Sofia said pointing to the red pair.

"Red!" Callie told her. "You know that one. Red, and green, and blue, and white..."

"Huh?"

"This is white," Arizona showed her.

It was a colour that she had yet to learn, so they weren't surprised that she didn't seem to know what it was.

"Oh."

"Are you going to help put Baby's socks on their feet when Baby comes?" Callie asked.

"Yay!" Sofia exclaimed.

"Oh, so exciting!" Arizona smiled. "Baby's such a lucky baby to have a sister like you."

"Sofia, guess where you get to go today," Callie said.

"Dada?"

"Tomorrow you can," she told her. "Tonight he has to work."

"Yeah?"

"Yes," she nodded. "But you get to come to Baby's checkup with us. We get to hear the baby in my belly."

Sofia lifted up her shirt and pointed to her belly button.

"Bell button," she said, able to say it a little more clearly these days.

"Madre's got a baby in her belly," Arizona said.

"Mama?"

"Not me," she told her. "Just Madre."

"Yep?"

"Uh huh!" she nodded. "Remember?"

* * *

Sofia decided to play shy during Madre's appointment. Although the doctor was trying to talk to her, she didn't seem very interested. This was a first for her and she didn't know what was going on. She just wanted to sit on Mommy's lap and cuddle.

"You can't even say anything?" Arizona asked after Dr. Nicholas asked Sofia if she was excited to be becoming a big sister. "Where did your voice go?"

"Buh bye."

"It went bye bye?" Callie asked. "Oh, no!"

She giggled.

"There's our happy girl," Mommy smiled. "Why are you so shy? Dr. Nicholas is nice. She's helping us make sure Baby is happy in Madre's tummy."

"Help Maday?"

"She's helping," Arizona nodded. "We want a nice healthy baby, right?"

"Sofia, would you like to help me check Baby's heartbeat?" Dr. Nicholas asked now that the big sister seemed to be a little more interested.

She smiled.

"Are you going to help?" Callie asked. "Sofia loves being a helper. This morning she helped Baby open a present from Grandma and Grandpa. Right, Sof?"

"Yeah."

"Do you want to help the doctor?" Arizona questioned.

"Yeah."

Mommy put her down and Sofia let the doctor pick her up. She let the two-year-old hold the Doppler with her as she found the baby's heartbeat. She had some time, so she didn't mind getting the toddler involved like this. In fact, she always liked to see little one's react when they heard the heartbeat. They never knew what it was, but they usually found it amusing.

"There it is," she smiled when they found it.

Sofia gasped.

"What is that, Sofia?" Callie asked. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Hi," she said.

"Baby's saying 'hi?'" Arizona replied. "You think so?"

"It sounds so strong," Callie smiled. "How fast is it?"

"149," the doctor answered.

"I think Baby's excited in there, Sofia," Arizona told her. "It sounds like it."

"Well, Sister," Dr. Nicholas smiled. "I think your new baby is nice and healthy. What do you think?"

"Uhhh..." Sofia replied.

"You don't know?" Callie asked. "Was it fun helping, though?"

"Yeah."

"Good," the doctor smiled. "Are you going to come help me again next time?"

"No," she was quick to answer.

"This isn't your thing, huh?" Arizona asked. "You'll have a lot more fun once Baby's movin' around in Madre's belly. It'll kick you!"

She laughed.

"It will!"

* * *

"Eat this," Arizona told Callie, handing her an apple.

Callie had been in the OR for six hours and she had just finished up. Arizona knew that her nausea had to be getting to her since it usually did whenever she wasn't able to snack often. Eating small portions helped to settle her stomach some.

"Thank you," she said, biting into the fruit. "Six hours feels like twelve right now. I'm starving and I _really _have to pee."

She gave her a kiss and took the apple back.

"Go," she replied. "Meet me in the cafeteria. I could use some lunch, too. We'll actually eat a real meal."

"Okay," she smiled.

When Callie made it to the cafeteria, Arizona had a sandwich and a bottle of water waiting for her. Mark and Lexie had joined them and they were talking about taking Sofia to the children's museum that weekend.

"They have a new water play exhibit," Lexie said.

"We were looking at pictures online and Sofia'd love it," Mark said. "We're going on Saturday as long as we don't get called in."

"She'll love it," Arizona smiled.

"What?" Callie asked since she had only heard that last part of the conversation.

"They're bringing Sofia to the children's museum," she explained.

"Oh," she said, taking her sandwich apart.

"I already took the cheese off," Arizona replied.

"Thank you."

"I'm feeling kind of crampy," she told her. "I didn't notice when I was in the OR, but now I'm just feeling...off."

"No spotting or anything, right?"

"Nope."

"Good," she said, as she took a bite of her salad. "Just take it easy. Any more scheduled surgeries today?"

"Nope," she replied. "I'm actually teaching a skills lab if nothing else comes in. Which sucks because we all know how much I love talking to large groups of people."

"Interns and residents," Arizona said. "You're their boss. It's not so bad."

"Still."

"Stop worrying about it and eat," she told her. "Drink your water, too. You were just in surgery for six hours. Your body just wants a break. Nicholas said Baby's doing great."

"I know," she replied.

"You're how far along?" Lexie asked.

"Eleven weeks."

"Your uterus is probably just growing. I can totally see why women get worried about this stuff, but it's actually normal."

"Yeah."

"Sofia and I'll just have to take extra good care of you tonight," Arizona smiled.

"Sounds great," she agreed. "I think Baby and I would love that."

Lexie's pager went off. She gave Mark a quick kiss before getting up and heading off to see what it was that her patient needed.

"I'm glad she wants to do something with Sofia, but a date at the children's museum?" Callie questioned.

"It's not a date," he replied. "I love Sofia, but dates don't include her. This is just an afternoon out. The dates are real dates. I'd never decide to go on a date to a place with a bunch of toddlers. Not my idea of romance."

"Still. She's okay with an afternoon at the children's museum?"

"It took her some time to get on board with the idea of being in Sofia's life," he said. "Especially since we all share custody and we're so close, but she's fine with it now. She loves Sof. I mean, who wouldn't?"

"She is perfect," Arizona agreed.

"The museum was her idea, actually," Mark said. "She's really trying. It's going well."

"Good."

"Did you bring Sof to daycare late today?" he asked. "I went by there and I didn't see her."

"We brought her to my appointment," Callie explained. "She wasn't very impressed, but she did like hearing th e heartbeat."

"Even when she's at my place, she talks about the baby," he said. "Well, not really _about _it because she doesn't get it yet, but we'll be playing and she'll be talking and just throw the word 'Baby' into the mix. So she's getting used to hearing the word so much."

"Yeah," Callie smiled. "She's going to be such a good big sister. I can't wait to see them together."

"I'm actually excited you're having another one," he told them. "There's no way I'm having more anytime soon, but Sofia's not getting any younger."

"She's two," Arizona laughed.

"You know what I mean," he said. "It'll be good for her to have a sibling closer to her age. Will it get weird at times when they realize I'm Sofia's dad and not this one's? Probably. But it's still good for her."

"Yeah," Callie replied. "I didn't really want them much more than three years apart. I didn't say that because I didn't want to rush Arizona, but I just felt like that would be good timing."

"And it worked out," Arizona smiled. "But thank you for not telling me that. , I would've felt bad if I wasn't ready yet."

"I know."

* * *

"Oh, Abuelo's calling!" Callie told Sofia.

She was laying on the couch trying to relax. She felt better than earlier, but she still wanted to take it easy for the night. Listening to her body was best for everyone. They were watching a movie while Arizona rubbed Madre's feet and Sofia showered her with the best toddler kisses ever.

"Oh!"

"Want to talk to him with me?" she asked as she answered her phone, putting it on speaker so that the whole family could hear. "Say 'Hi, Abuelo!'"

"Hi!" she repeated, actually loud enough for him to hear her on the first try.

"Hi, Sofia," he said. "How are you?"

"Are you good?" Arizona asked. "Say 'Good!'"

"Good," she said softly.

"He can't hear you if you don't talk loudly, Mija," Callie replied. "Say it loudly."

"No."

"Do you want to say it in Spanish? Remember I taught you it last week?"

"No," she refused.

"You don't want to tell him?" she laughed. "Okay."

"How was Baby's appointment, Sofia?" Abuelo asked. "Is the baby good?"

She nodded, not understanding that her grandfather couldn't see her nodding through the phone.

"Baby's great," Callie answered. "Nice strong heartbeat and everything. I'm not feeling so great tonight, but we're okay."

"Good," he replied. "What do you ladies want for Christmas?"

"Daddy, you don't have to get us anything big," Callie said. "We don't need anything. Really. Even Sofia has so much stuff. Go easy on the toys."

"That wouldn't make me a very fun abuelo," he told them. "Would it, Sofia?"

"Toy," she told him. "Lot."

"You want lots of toys?" he said. "Okay."

"Yeah!"

* * *

"Our house is going to be taken over by toys," Arizona said when she got into bed with her wife that night. "And once Baby's here and playing with as many toys as Sofia does, we're going to need to move to fit them all."

"I don't think it'll be _that_ bad," Callie laughed as she flipped through their baby name book.

"I know. Any you like?" she asked as Callie turned the page.

"Paloma had been a contender when I was having Sofia," she said. "You probably don't remember, but you would squeeze my hand if you liked a name and you liked Paloma. I still like that one."

"I guess it's pretty," Arizona said. "So you still think going with something Spanish is what you want to do?"

"Probably," she nodded. "It doesn't _ha_ve to be Spanish if we find something else we love more, but I'd like to at least have a few Spanish names in the running."

"Okay," she said. "What was the boy name you picked last time? I know technically I helped, but I have no idea."

"Francisco."

"Oh."

"We would have used Cisco as a nickname," she said. "I like that the nickname starts with a C like my name, but it's sort of a place name like yours."

"I'm not named after the state, though."

"I know," she said. "But everybody thinks you are."

"True," she replied. "That could be cute. I don't know. Maybe it's just too soon for me to think about names. We have too much time to go back and forth. Towards the end we'll just have to make a choice. We won't obsess as much. You know? We'll just go with our gut and figure out what we love most."

"So you expect me not to think about names this whole time?"

"We can make a list and narrow it down," she said. "But I don't want to pick one so soon. Or two, I guess, because we don't know the gender."

"We picked Sofia's name when I was in labour."

"We don't exactly have to cut it that close," she smiled. "But week eleven might be a bit soon."

"Okay," she said, giving her a kiss just as her wife's hand rested on her stomach. "What are you doing?"

"I don't know," she smiled. "I kinda like this. How are you feeling now?"

"No more cramping."

"Good."

"If we hadn't just heard the heartbeat, I think I would have been nervous," Callie said. "Even though this is my second pregnancy, it just feels so odd to have this thing take over my body. I love it, but I obsess."

"I've noticed," she smiled. "You're just being a good madre. I think Baby appreciates it."

"Is it the second trimester yet?" she asked.

"Almost," she said.

"Sofia's at Mark's tomorrow night," she said. "Maybe if I feel okay, we can have a little date night?"

"Sounds great," she agreed. "Where do you want to go for dinner?"

"I thought we could stay in," she said.

"Even better."


	29. Christmas Time

"Sofia'll be home any minute," Callie said. "We have to get dressed."

Just over two weeks had passed and Callie was officially out of the first trimester. She didn't feel much better, but her body was beginning to change ever so slightly. Currently, her wife's head was resting on her tiny, tiny baby bump as they lay in bed skin on skin. When Callie had clothing on, no one could see this change, but they both knew it was there.

"Shh..." Arizona said. "You've finally got some energy and I'm reaping the benefits for as long as I can."

"I've also got some nausea," Callie said. "Still."

"I know," she replied. "Hopefully it goes away soon."

"Doubtful," she said.

"What do you want for breakfast?" she asked. "I don't even want to move right now, but..."

"Cheese pizza."

"The baby's" love/hate relationship with cheese had continued. One day, Callie couldn't stand it, and the next it was all that she wanted. This was particularly annoying because it was so unpredictable. If she wanted cheese and they didn't have any, it drove her crazy. If she didn't want cheese and they had a ton of it, it bothered her.

"For breakfast?" she asked.

"It's all the fetus' fault," she answered.

There was a knock on the door that they knew was Mark. He was there to drop off Sofia. While they couldn't wait to jump right back into the routine of their busy girl, they had also enjoyed the last two days just the two of them. If they weren't at work, they were in bed or on some romantic date somewhere. Even though she was still nauseous, Callie had been feeling better for the first time in weeks and this was the result.

"I love being a mom," Arizona said aloud. "I really do, but it's very early in the morning and she's going to be ready to go, go, go."

"This co-parenting thing spoils us sometimes," Callie agreed. "But soon we'll have at least one here all the time."

"And we will never sleep again."

"Nope."

Arizona got up and quickly threw on some clothing so that she could go to the door and get Sofia. As predicted, the little lady was all ready to play at six thirty in the morning. In fact, she danced upstairs and into her mothers' bedroom where she and her mommy found that Madre had a new problem.

"Time for some new bras, Madre?" Arizona smiled.

"You think?" she asked. "I knew they were growing, but when did _this_ happen? And I _barely _have any changes with my belly, but these are huge? How is that?"

"Sof, do you want to go shopping today?" Arizona wondered. "Madre needs to go. Maybe we can go see Santa at the mall!"

"Ho! Ho! Ho!" she replied, doing her best two-year-old Santa Claus.

"He does say that," Callie smiled. "Are you excited? Christmas is in just a few days! Grandma, Grandpa and Abuelo all get here today."

"Yummy!"

"Yummy?" Arizona asked. "You mean 'yay?'"

"Yummy," she insisted.

"You're so crazy!" Callie laughed. "Mama and I have to finish getting ready, then we'll eat and go shopping, 'kay?"

"Daddy said she already ate," Arizona reported.

"What did you eat this morning?" Madre asked.

"Pink," she said.

"Pink? Maybe strawberry yogurt?"

"Yum!"

* * *

Even though she wanted cheese pizza, Callie opted for something a little more breakfast-like that morning. However, she definitely needed her pizza for dinner. It was in the oven as they worked on decorating their Christmas tree when her dad and Arizona's parents arrived.

"Isn't it a little late to be doing this?" Arizona's father asked. "All of this work just to take it down in a few days?"

"We didn't have time before now," she told her dad. "We've been busy with work and Sofia. We did have some time while she was at Mark's, but Calliope was feeling better and we didn't want to waste that time decorating. Plus, we wanted Sofia's help."

"Oh!" Sofia said, taking an ornament out of the box.

"We're going to lose a ton of ornaments this year, aren't we?" Callie replied.

"Those are the non-breakable ones," Arizona said. "She's good."

"She'll still attack the tree," she told her.

"Oh, I know."

"You're just exploring, right?" Grandma asked the little girl as she picked her up. "Which one do you have there?"

Sofia held it out.

"Oh, that's an S for Sofia," she smiled. "Is that your letter?"

"No."

"Yes, it is!" Arizona replied. "Say 'S,'"

"S!"

"Good job," Grandpa praised. "Tell Grandma to help you put it on the tree."

"Done," she said instead.

"Oh, you're over decorating?" Callie asked. "Want to come with me while I check on the pizza?"

Grandma put her down and she followed after her madre. She didn't understand that dinner wasn't ready just yet, so she thought for sure that she was going to get some food if she did.

"Ho! Ho! Ho!" she exclaimed as she went.

"Did somebody meet Santa Claus?" Abuelo laughed.

"Today," Arizona answered. "She didn't quite want to sit on his lap, but she did tell him that she'd like Baby for Christmas. We told her she's gonna have to wait on that one."

"Yeah," he agreed. "June's still a ways away."

* * *

"Merry Christmas," Mrs. Robbins greeted her daughter-in-law early on Christmas morning.

Sofia wasn't up just yet because they were waiting on Mark and Lexie to arrive first, but all of the adults were sitting in the living room when Callie came down.

"Merry Christmas," she said. "But I'm pretty sure your grandchild hates me."

Arizona smiled sympathetically. "More morning sickness?"

"Yep," she nodded. "Is it June yet?"

"Not quite," she replied. "But I was rubbing your belly this morning and it seems bigger today."

"You're rubbing my stomach in my sleep?" she asked.

"Why not?" she smiled.

As much as Arizona didn't particularly want to carry this baby, she was slightly jealous of the fact that Callie could already feel connected to him or her. She knew she would fall head over heels in love with it later, so she wasn't worried, but she wanted some bonding time now too.

"It's only bigger because of that amazing pie Lexie made yesterday," she said. "I think Baby and I ate half of it."

"And it wasn't even made of cheese."

"Ew," she said.

"Not a cheese day?"

"Definitely not," she shook her head.

They heard Sofia start to talk to herself upstairs. Most of it was nonsensical, but every now and then she threw in a familiar word – "Baby," "Mama," or "Pity" were her picks for today's morning talk it seemed.

"I'll be back," Arizona said, getting up to go get her.

"She's going to love all of this," Carlos said of all of the gifts.

Of course, he was correct. Her big brown eyes basically bulged out of her head when she saw all of the presents that awaited her. They tried to stall her some, but she wasn't having it. Of course, she was only two. Asking her to wait wasn't likely to work anyway. They decided to let her start opening a few gifts before Daddy and Lexie arrived.

"Baby," she said as she opened up a new doll.

"Should we open her up?" Arizona asked.

"Brudder," she corrected.

"Oh, that's a brother baby, not a sister baby?" Callie asked.

"Yeah."

"Which kind is in Madre's belly?" Grandma questioned.

"Umm...pity."

"A boy or a girl?" Arizona wondered.

"Pity!" she insisted.

"Okay, okay!" she laughed. "We don't know what it is, but it's pretty?"

"Yep," she nodded. "Mama."

"It's a girl like Mama?" Callie asked.

"Yep," she said.

"We'll see!"

"Hi," she said as she got up and walked over to another present that she wanted to unwrap.

"You're so polite," Grandpa told her.

"How about we open this one first, though?" Mommy suggested, since that other one was from Mark and he wasn't there just yet.

She kissed the box that Mommy had pointed out.

"Sofia Robbin Sloan, you're so silly," Callie said as she recorded the moment. "Kissin' your Christmas gifts!"

"You love them, right?" Abuelo asked. "Merry Christmas!"


	30. Time Flies

"Are you changing your baby's diaper?" Arizona asked as she watched her daughter undress one of her dolls.

Now that Callie was over halfway through her pregnancy they were really trying to focus on helping Sofia learn how to be gentle. Her baby dolls were perfect for that. Of course, Sofia was also still a two-year-old and sometimes – like right now – she was a little too rough. Her baby doll's clothing and little diaper had just been forcefully pulled off. It was probably a good thing that dressing her brother or sister wasn't something that the big sister would be doing.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Pees."

"She peed? Where does Sofia go pee?"

Potty training was going well, but Sofia seemed to sometimes forget to ask to go to the potty. Therefore, whenever she brought it up on her own, they used it as a reminder of this newest big girl behaviour.

"Potty, Mama," she answered.

"That's right, Big Girl," she smiled. "Madre, Mommy, and Daddy are so proud of you for doing so well with your potty training."

"Pee, Mama," she said as she looked up at her.

"You need to pee?" she questioned. "Okay, let's go."

Sofia was just finishing up in the bathroom when Madre arrived home from work. She found her girls in there washing Sofia's little hands.

"Scrub them," Arizona told the toddler while she helped her rub her hands together.

"Yay!" she smiled when the soap began to bubble up.

"Bubbles!"

"You girls look like you've had fun," Callie smiled.

"How was work?" Arizona replied.

"Long," she said. "Baby's not even big and my back kills me after all of that walking."

Callie's morning sickness had finally begun to faze itself out over the last two or three weeks. However, weeks twenty-four and twenty-five had replaced that symptom with pains everywhere. Her backaches were getting more and more annoying by the day and her leg cramps weren't much better.

"I'm only twenty-five weeks," she complained. "This kid has no idea what it's doing. My morning sickness lasted well beyond the first trimester, I'm not _that _far along and I feel how I felt at the very end with Sofia, and baby's smaller than most."

"The very end, huh?"

"Okay, maybe not the _very_ end, but still."

Arizona began to dry off Sofia's hands.

"I'll give you a backrub once she's in bed tonight," she told her. "Keep in mind that you have a demanding job _and _a toddler this time around. It's bound to be harder on you."

"I know," she replied. "I want to be one of those people who are just made to make babies though. You know? Those women who say the whole thing's so easy. That would have probably been you."

"Right," she laughed.

Sofia went over to Madre and Callie picked her up.

"I saw your baby in the living room," she told her. "Are you learning to change diapers?"

"Yep."

"Are you going to change Baby's stinky ones?"

"No."

"Where is Baby?" Arizona asked her.

Now that Callie was growing more and more, Sofia was able to point to "Baby" whenever they asked her to. Of course, she didn't exactly understand the concept of pregnancy, but she was able to repeat what they had showed her. She placed her hand on Madre's bump.

"Baby food?" she wondered.

"Baby does want food," Callie nodded. "How'd you know?"

"Sof food."

"Oh, because you want food?" she asked.

"We were having so much fun playing, so I just ordered a pizza," Arizona told her wife. "It should be here any minute."

"Good," she said. "I think I might have felt some strong kicks today."

"You think?"

Callie had been able to feel well-defined movements for about two weeks now. However, none of them had been quite strong enough for Arizona or Sofia to feel.

"I was in the OR, so I didn't exactly get to check if I could feel them externally, but Baby kicked four times in a row and they were pretty hard kicks."

"Good," Arizona smiled.

"Good," Sofia repeated.

"I told my mom that we have another ultrasound tomorrow because Dr. Nicholas wants to check baby's growth, and she got all nervous. I had to promise her that sometimes it's normal for baby's to measure a bit small. Baby's still growing in between appointments, but it's just on its own little growth curve. Sofia usually measured a week or so ahead. It's the same thing."

"Yep," she smiled.

Neither of them was worried about the baby's growth at this point. They knew that Callie's body was changing and their son or daughter was growing as well. However, the doctor had suggested another scan just to make sure of this. Even she was fairly certain that everything was fine, but it wouldn't hurt to check.

"And we get to see Baby again."

Arizona smiled. "And I'll prove to you that it's Sofia's clone. Now that it's grown some more, you'll see."

"It has a mouth and chin _very_ similar to yours," Callie said. "Not exactly because we used a donor, but we still picked a good one because I totally see features close to yours."

"I don't see it," she laughed as she came over and kissed Sofia. "But it has the same cheeks as this girl right here. I'm already powerless against their chubbiness. Do you think Baby knows that?"

"Yeah," Sofia nodded.

* * *

The rest of the night was pretty uneventful. They ate their pizza, played with some of Sofia's stuffed animals, and then got ready for bed. The plan was for Madre to take a bath as Mommy laid Sofia down, but Mommy and Sofia both came into the room as Callie was applying lotion to her belly afterwards.

"Aren't you supposed to be sleeping?" she asked as she kissed her.

"I told her I was going to say goodnight to Madre and Baby and she had to come, too," Arizona explained.

"Would you like to help rub Baby's lotion in?" Callie asked as her wife put the toddler down on the bed.

"Baby might kick, Sofia!" Arizona told her.

"I don't know," Callie said. "It's been pretty calm tonight. I felt it wiggle a little bit in the bathtub, but that's about it."

Arizona sat on the bed and placed both of her hands on her wife's belly. As she rubbed in some of the lotion, she was hoping that the little one would respond. Sofia started mimicking her actions.

"Baby loves you so much," Callie told Sofia. "It's so happy you're helping."

"It needs to get a little happier," she replied. "Catalina..."

Callie very obviously cleared her throat. Arizona had started looking at baby names and she decided that she liked Catalina with the nickname Lina. She thought that Sofia and Lina would make the sweetest sister set. Plus, it was another Spanish name.

"Oh, you like it," she said.

"I do," she nodded. "We could definitely have a little Catalina, but what if it's a boy? We can't start calling it by any name."

"I don't like as many of the Spanish boy names," she said. "I like Marco, but that would be weird because of Mark."

"So it's out," Callie agreed. "I know."

"What about Carlo?" she asked. "After your dad?"

"Maybe," she said. "But it would be strange if our boy name was after someone and our girl name wasn't. And Sofia's isn't."

"Sofia's middle names are after me and Mark," she said. "It's not like we just picked them out of nowhere. And Carlos and Carlo are still a _little_ different."

"True. Maybe. But then what about Daniela after your dad?" she smiled.

"Oh, I like that," she smiled. "But I like Lina, too."

"What are you thinking, Sofia? Do you want a Lina, a Daniela, or a Carlo?"

"No."

"You just don't like any of those names?" Arizona asked. "Well, I think those might be them. We'll see. We're going to keep looking, but those are good."

"So Paloma and Cisco are out?" Callie asked.

They hadn't talked about these names in weeks. They had both been in the running just before Callie delivered Sofia, but there was something not right about them now. They just weren't names that would ever belong to this baby.

"They're just not my favourites."

"Okay."

"And I don't necessarily think it's a girl," she clarified. "I really don't know. We just have more girl names."

"Yeah."

* * *

Their baby was sucking his or her thumb for the entire ultrasound the next day. Its little feet were also going crazy because it didn't seem to enjoy the gentle pressure with which the ultrasound wand had to press down.

"You'd definitely be able to feel these if we weren't in the middle of this," the doctor told Arizona. "It won't be long before you get a chance."

"Good," Arizona smiled. "That is so not 'my' mouth, Calliope. Those lips are _all _yours."

"We'll compare them to Sofia's ultrasound," she said.

"And I'll be right."

"What do you think?" Callie questioned the doctor.

"I don't know," she replied. "I never saw pictures of your donor, so I can't really say."

"Well, he looks a lot like my wife," she smiled. "That mouth and that little chin look like Arizona's, do they not?"

"Maybe a bit," she smiled as she looked between Baby's image and Arizona.

"Can we focus on just enjoying the overall cuteness?" Arizona laughed. "Does it matter?"

"No, but I just think it's cool," she replied.

"It is," the doctor agreed. "And as we suspected, Baby's just a little thing. It's measuring somewhere around the twentieth percentile, but that's what it was measuring at your last scan, too. As long as that continues to be the case, there is absolutely no reason to be concerned."

"And delivery'll be easier," Arizona pointed out.

"Oh, yeah. This time I'll have a tiny baby and an epidural. It'll be great," Callie smiled.

* * *

Sofia had her hands on her madre's belly that night as they showed her the ultrasound pictures. She didn't really understand what she was seeing, but they still liked to show her. Including her in this pregnancy was important to them.

"Those are Baby's feet," Arizona told her. "They were kickin' and kickin' and kickin' today."

"No kick," she said. "Ouch!"

"Our baby isn't being mean," Callie smiled. "It's trying to stretch my belly out so that it can grow."

"Oh."

"Want to see if we can make Baby kick?" Mommy questioned as she began gently pushing her fingers against Callie's belly.

As usual, Sofia decided to do exactly what Mommy was doing. She was a little rougher with it, though. It wasn't that she meant to be, but just that she didn't know better at this point.

"Gentle," Callie told her. "Not so hard, Sof."

She stopped and kissed Callie's bump.

"Good girl," Arizona said.

Just as her lips touched Callie's skin, her brother or sister decided to kick. When she felt it, Sofia backed away quickly. She had no idea what was going on.

"Did it just kick her?" Arizona smiled.

"Yeah," she said as she moved the blonde's hand to that spot. "Just wait."

"The baby kicked because it loves your kisses, Sister!" Arizona told Sofia. "Cool! You got to feel it even before me."

"Just wait, Mommy," Callie said.

"Oh, I'll be here all night."

Sofia kissed Madre's stomach again.

"Are you and baby playing?" Callie laughed. "Already?"

Arizona had to wait another half an hour or so before their unborn child decided to cooperate, but it did kick for her. Suddenly, as she watched Sofia "play" with the baby by planting kisses on Madre's belly and hoping for kicks in return, she realized something.

"This is going to be our family," she said as it hit her. "The four of us hanging out together. I obviously knew that, but it's happening. Sooner rather than later. This pregnancy is starting to seem like its taking no time at all."

"As uncomfortable as I am, I'm trying to soak it all in. These are the last first kicks we'll feel."

"Yeah."


	31. Easter

Over the next three weeks, baby number two seemed to hit a growth spurt. It was still on the smaller side as it had been for the entire pregnancy, but Callie's belly had gotten even larger and his or her kicks were consistently strong now.

"I think it's a boy," Teddy told Callie at work on Easter weekend.

"I think so, too," she said. "Lately I've been changing my mind a lot, but today that's what I'm thinking."

"You could just know."

"We want the surprise," she smiled. "It's fun to guess. I loved finding out for sure when Sofia was born. I really want Arizona to feel that feeling. I know that she didn't know before I told her either, but that moment wasn't the same for her."

She was obviously looking forward to meeting their second child, but she also couldn't wait for Arizona to get to experience the things that she had missed out on while she was in her coma and recovering afterwards. Sofia's birth was still absolutely amazing, but just thinking about welcoming this little one with her wife by her side made Callie so excited. She kept saying it, but she really was that thrilled about it.

"I know."

"Look who it is," they heard Arizona's voice say.

They looked over to see that she was walking up with a very tired Sofia in her arms. Callie had been expecting her, since her next shift was starting right about now, but she didn't know why their daughter was with her. She should have dropped her off at the daycare before coming up.

"What are you doing here?" she asked the little girl as she took her from Arizona. "Oh, you're heavy! I think you've grown almost as much as the baby has this last month."

"No," she said.

"No?" she asked as she gave her a kiss. "Are you grumpy? I take it naptime didn't happen today?"

"Not exactly," Arizona answered. "But I got a text from Daddy saying that he's just about finished up here, so he can take her for the rest of the day. That way she's not cranky for the daycare teachers."

Sofia rested her head on Callie's shoulder. She was resisting any signs of happiness until Auntie Teddy started making funny faces at her and she couldn't help but smile.

"Hi," Teddy smiled back. "Did you and Mommy have a good morning? Besides the not napping?"

"Yeah," she said.

"Good."

"Tell us about it," Callie encouraged, since they were trying to expand her vocabulary these days.

She was doing well in every other area, so they knew that the day would surely come that Sofia would be a little chatterbox. However, it would be nice if she would start really using sentences sooner rather than later at this point. Being the main focus in the lives of all three of her parents was partly to blame for this. They hadn't really been making her talk all that much, they had come to realize. She had been getting away with cute little words instead. Now that she was about to have a younger sibling, they wanted that to start to change.

"What did we do first?" Arizona asked.

"Cuddles," she said. "In Mama bed."

"What did we do while we were cuddling?" she asked. "What did we talk about?"

"Ummm...baby stuff," she smiled.

"Tell them which names you decided you like," she said.

"What names?" Callie asked when the little lady didn't reply. "Say 'I like...'"

"Sof wike Lina," she said.

"You like Catalina? Somehow I think Mommy might have decided that for you. And can you say 'I like Lina?' That's how big, big girls say it."

"I wike Lina," she compromised.

"Closer," she smiled.

"Sister also decided she likes Lola," Arizona revealed. "I definitely didn't put that one in her head. I'm not a fan."

"Me neither," Callie agreed. "Sorry, Sofia."

"Sof wike that," she said.

"Like, Baby," Arizona explained. "With an L."

"Mommy's trying to get you to speak so well," Teddy said. "That's good, but I'm wondering where my little Sofia went! Did you and the baby both grow a whole bunch?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

"It's crazy how fast they change," Callie said. "We're going to try to really take it all in with Baby, aren't we Sofia?"

She nodded.

"How is Baby today?" Mommy wondered.

"Good," she smiled. "Whatever you did to my back last night worked. It feels so much better."

"Good," she replied. "Are you sure you have to work tomorrow?"

"Neither of us wants to work on Easter," she said. "Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I can take it off. It's still my job."

"Slowing down would be good, though."

"I've got plenty of time left," she told her. "I'll slow down later."

"Fine. Our parents both sent Easter gifts for Sofia and Baby," she said.

Considering that they would both be working for a large part of the day, the ladies had told their parents that coming for a visit probably wouldn't be too enjoyable. They wouldn't get to spend nearly enough time together and they didn't want to feel bad for leaving them alone with Sofia on the holiday. All three grandparents said that they didn't mind, but they ended up just sending gifts. Phone calls would have to do this year.

"Did you open them up?" Callie asked.

"Nope," Sofia said.

"We're waiting," Arizona explained.

"Okay."

"Should we go find that daddy of yours?" Arizona asked. "Mommy's got to get to work. Let's go see if he's ready to go."

* * *

Callie paged her wife to an on call room that night. It wasn't for any romantic reason this time, but because she was exhausted and hungry. She didn't even feel like taking the long walk to get her own dinner tonight. After being on her feet in the operating room for the last six hours, she felt lucky to have a wife who was willing to deliver it to her.

"I got chicken noodle soup," she said as she came back in with two servings worth. "Is that okay?"

"Sure," she nodded. "Anything works."

"Still think that you don't have to take it easy?" she questioned.

"I'm tired and my feet are sore," she replied. "I'd be tired if I was at home with Sofia all day, too. That was my last surgery of the day."

"Okay."

She sat down and they both began eating. It became clear to Arizona just how hungry her wife was when Callie was finished the meal by the time she was only halfway done herself.

"What is August in Spanish?" she wondered.

"Why?"

"I just had a patient named August and I think it's cute for a little boy," she said. "But we want a Spanish name, so..."

"Well, I don't really like the literal translation as a name at all, but there's the name Augusto. That could work."

"Is it too grand to go with Sofia, though?" she asked.

"It's less popular for sure, but I think they sound nice together. And if we call him August as a nickname..."

"Yeah. So Catalina or Daniela or Carlo or Augusto?" she asked. "We've been looking for weeks and those are the only ones that seem to work."

"Well, we could use something else if it's a boy," Callie said. "I think Daniela might be my front runner for a girl, but what about Timothy for a boy?"

"You'd be okay with that?"

"Of course," she said. "He's your brother. That's more important than it being a Spanish name."

She smiled.

"So is that it? Timothy for a boy."

"If you want," Callie said.

"Can I think about it?" she asked. "It might...it'd be nice, but it might be too hard to have another Tim around."

"Okay."

"And I still like Catalina for a girl. Even if Daniela is after my dad."

"We have time to decide," she laughed.

"I know we do."

"I found two more stretch marks today," she said. "Apparently Baby doesn't think Sofia stretched my skin out enough."

"Stop counting them," Arizona replied as she kissed her. "It's ridiculous."

"Fine."

"And definitely stop talking about them," she told her. "They're not a big deal. I'd rather be talking about how excited our kid's going to get tomorrow when she gets to hunt for Easter eggs all over the yard."

* * *

Callie and Arizona picked Sofia up from Mark's just before her bedtime that night. She was slightly confused as to why she wasn't just sleeping at Daddy's, but they had the better location for an Easter egg hunt, so they wanted her to wake up at their house.

They started off the day by making a trail of eggs that began at their girl's bed and led out to the yard. She was having a blast picking up each one – sometimes more than one at a time – and checking out their surprise contents.

"Open you," she said to one as she tried to get it to open for her.

"Sofia, how about you put that one in your basket and keep collecting some?" Callie laughed. "We haven't had breakfast yet, and Brother or Sister isn't too happy with me. Plus, Mommy and I do need to work later today."

Mark arrived just then and let himself in through their gate. At first, Sofia didn't seem to notice him since she was still working on opening up the egg that she wanted to explore.

"Sofia..." he smiled.

She looked up.

"Happy Easter! There are a lot more eggs. Keep looking."

"Yeah?" she asked. "Lots more now?"

"There are lots more. Look at them all! The Easter bunny spoiled somebody."

She giggled.

"Open up now?" she asked him.

"Sure," he agreed as he took it from her. "Was this one tricky for you?"

"Yep," she nodded.

"Tell Daddy 'please' and 'thank you,'" Arizona said.

"Pease, tank you," she smiled.

"You're very welcome," Mark said as he opened it. "It's chocolate in here."

Callie picked up one of the eggs that Sofia had yet to discover. They had definitely gone overboard, so Sofia wasn't going to miss a few chocolates if she helped herself.

"Calliope, it's eight fifteen in the morning," Arizona smiled.

"And Baby deserves some Easter fun, too," she replied as she unwrapped the chocolate that was inside of the egg. "Sofia, is this fun?"

"Yeah!"

"We have presents from us, Grandma, Grandpa, and Abuelo for you, too."

"Yeah?"

"We do! After our Easter eggs are all found."

* * *

**You all will have another "I Wanna Grow Old With You" update within the week. There aren't too many more chapters before Miss Sofia becomes a big sister! Thanks for reading. **


	32. Almost There

Arizona woke up in the middle of the night one day at the end of May. She could hear the television on in the living room, so she knew that her now very pregnant wife was up again. She got out of bed and went to join her, figuring that it was the least that she could do.

Callie was thirty-six weeks pregnant and – even though they still had a least a week left – she was ready to be done with this pregnancy. Last time she hadn't wanted labour to start because of the situation that they were in. This time she wanted it to happen as soon as possible.

"Have you given up again?" she wondered.

"Braxton-Hicks," she said. "I get that they're supposed to get my body ready for the real thing, but I've had enough of them. I'm ready."

"At least one more week," Arizona smiled sympathetically. "We want Baby to be nice and developed."

"I know," she agreed. "But it's running out of room and still kicking me like crazy. I don't think it realizes there's not as much room left in there."

Arizona placed her hand on Callie's belly. As much as she was hoping that their little one would arrive sooner rather than later, she knew that her wife clearly wished that more. She couldn't have been any more grateful that Callie was willing to take on all of the aches, pains, and other unpleasant pregnancy symptoms just to add to their family.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Not really," she said.

"How in the world did you do this last time?" she asked her. "Without me this must have been even worse. You slept on a couch in my hospital room. I know you had Mark, but –"

"Honestly, I was so focused on you that how I was feeling seemed trivial," she said. "I was miserable, but you were worse off. And at that point, I didn't want Sofia to come because I didn't want you to miss it."

"Yeah."

"But we don't have to worry about that now," she replied. "So this kid can come next week. That would be great."

"Hear that?" Arizona said as she gave Callie's bump a kiss. "We want to meet you soon!"

"Is it just me or is Baby getting lower?"

"It's just you," Arizona decided. "Sorry. You haven't dropped just yet."

"You're supposed to say yes," she said. "Just lie to the miserable pregnant lady."

"Soon," she told her. "Baby can't stay in there forever."

"Thank God."

"My mom called again just to make sure that we're absolutely positive that we don't need her to fly in."

As much as they did want their families to help them celebrate when the new baby arrived, they had decided against having anyone there for the actual birth. Arizona had missed Sofia's birth, and even the bonding that they were able to do afterwards took place in a different way than they had ever imagined. This time they needed time alone with their little family. The grandparents would be more than welcome to fly in after a few days, but it wasn't in the plans to have them there just yet.

"I feel bad now," Callie said. "She knows our reasoning, right? It's not that she's not helpful or anything. After Sofia was born, she helped so much."

"She knows. She just can't wait to meet this baby."

"I know. She will. Just not right away. We need that time."

"Yeah."

"You still agree, right? If you –"

"I agree. They can come when Baby's a few days old and help us get adjusted. Three or four days won't kill them."

"Nope," she confirmed as the baby began kicking again. "This baby's either going to be the most relaxed baby ever or really, really feisty," Callie predicted. "With how my pregnancy's been, I don't think it knows how to find middle ground. I'm hoping that it makes things difficult while I'm pregnant, but afterwards it's really calm."

"I hope so, too," she smiled. "Speaking of easy, are you sure you don't want me to take Sofia to daycare? You could just take a break today."

"I'm fine," she said. "Okay, I'm miserable. But that's not going to change. I might as well keep busy and have Sofia here. Plus, I want time with just her. Pretty soon we're going to have to split our time between them. And since I'll be nursing, I'll be taking care of Baby's needs a lot more."

"Yeah. Are you sure, though?"

"Yes."

Shortly after that, Arizona gave Callie a massage. They seemed to be one of the only things that worked to make her comfortable. Her wife had the magic touch. They both drifted back off to sleep eventually.

* * *

Arizona couldn't help but keep checking in with Callie all day that day. She had been doing so for the last week and a half. She knew that her wife wasn't going to be going into labour right now, but she still felt like calling home every once and a while. Spending the day with an almost three-year-old could be exhausting for anyone, let alone someone who was just a month away from their due date.

"We're great," Callie told her. "We packed the hospital bags, we put away all the laundry that you did last night, and now we're folding the last of Baby's clothes and putting them away. Sofia's being a big girl and helping me. She thinks it's fun."

"Yeah!" Arizona heard their little girl say in the background. "Hey, look!"

"I see," Callie smiled. "Baby's pants have a little whale on the butt, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Nesting?" Arizona asked.

"Big time," Callie replied. "Earlier she was playing and the toys all over the place were driving me crazy. I just want everything put away and tidy."

She laughed.

Sofia opened another one of Baby's drawers. When she pulled out a burp cloth, Arizona heard her tell Callie that it was a "tiny blankie."

"It's a burp cloth," she corrected.

"Oh."

"I'm glad you two are having a good day," Arizona said.

"How many more times are you going to check in?" Callie laughed.

"Probably a few," she admitted.

"I'm fine," she said. "After this, we're putting on a movie and cuddling, but I'm fine."

"Good."

* * *

Mark was supposed to pick Sofia up later that night, but they were having so much fun playing when Arizona arrived home that she called him to ask if he could just take her tomorrow instead. Callie might have had a point. Sofia probably did need some special time with her moms before a new brother or sister joined the family. Hopefully it would help her to adjust. Mark didn't have a problem with it, so they decided to take Sofia for a walk to get some ice cream.

Callie yawned. The day had been great, but she was still pretty worn out. There had been a little rest while Sofia was interested in the movie, but she had otherwise been doing something all day.

"I have no idea how you're still doing so much," Arizona said.

"It's nesting," she replied. "I can't help it. Plus, Baby's quiet today. Not as much kicking. Enough, but not as often."

"Good."

"Even so, I am very much looking forward to tomorrow. Today was great, but when she's with Mark tomorrow after he's off, I'm going to take a long, long bath."

"Can I join you?"

"I'm all huge."

"So?"

They arrived at the ice cream shop and Sofia insisted that they all had to get the same flavour of the frozen treat. To be more specific, she said that it had to be strawberry today. They obliged since Callie didn't care what flavour it was as long as it was ice cream and Arizona happened to like that kind.

"Lick your cone, Sofia," Callie told her. "It's dripping."

Sofia licked the wrong side.

"This one," Arizona explained as she turned it around.

Sofia licked it just before it was about to drip onto the table. It was just an ice cream cone, but she was so happy to have it. Usually she ate ice cream in a bowl, but this time they had let her try out the cone. It might have been slightly messier, but it made her feel grown up.

"Was this a good day?" she asked. "You were a helper and now you get an ice cream. You're getting pretty big, you know. Before we know it, you'll be in college!"

Sofia laughed.

"Say 'no!'" Callie replied. "Not yet, Mama!"

"No?" she asked.

"Don't grow up too fast, okay?"

"Okay."

"Are you all ready to be a big sister, though?" Arizona wondered.

"Lina comes out?" she asked.

Even though Arizona had not referred to the baby by this name in quite some time since she didn't want to confuse their daughter, Sofia had been calling her new sibling by her personal favourite name choice every now and then.

"We don't know if Baby's Catalina, Daniela, Timothy, or Augusto."

"Lina."

"You think?"

"Uh huh."


	33. The Arrival

**I know this one took me so long to get up. I kept making changes to it because it wasn't exactly what I wanted. The next chapter will come much faster (by Friday). Thanks for reading. **

* * *

"What's going to happen tomorrow?" Arizona asked their almost three-year-old a month later.

Callie was going to be forty-one weeks pregnant as of tomorrow. Being a full week over her due date meant that she would be induced. One way or another, Baby Torres would make his or her entrance into the world. They had been preparing the sister-to-be for this for weeks now, but now that they knew exactly when it was going to happen, they were going over the plans with her again.

"Baby comes out," Sofia answered.

"We can't wait, can we?" Callie smiled. "My belly can't possibly grow any bigger."

Sofia leaned over from where they were seated on the couch and kissed Callie's bump. Even she knew that the baby had been making things difficult lately and she was trying to be especially loving now.

"Nope," she said.

"What's the first thing you're going to do when you see the baby?"

"Hold the baby," she decided.

"I can't wait to hold the baby, either," Arizona agreed.

Sofia ran her hands through her messy hair. She and her moms had just had an accidental nap while cuddling and watching some TV. Now Mark was on his way to pick Sofia up and she was looking kind of rough.

"Can we brush your gorgeous hair?" Callie asked.

"Yes," she said. "Do Baby's hair?"

"We can't brush Baby's hair," Arizona laughed. "He or she isn't here yet!"

After letting Mommy fix her hair up, Sofia decided to be silly and attempt to brush the baby's hair anyways. Callie didn't really like how the hair brush felt against her bare belly, but she put up with it until Mark came because it was so sweet of Sofia to want to take care of her unborn sibling.

"What are you doing?" Daddy laughed.

"Do Baby's hair," she smiled.

"Whatever you say."

Arizona handed Mark a little pink bag. When Sofia had seen their hospital bags all ready to go at the door, she had insisted that she be able to pack up a big sister bag of her own. Obviously her father had all of the things that she needed at his place, but it helped her feel like she was a part of the whole "baby day" event.

"Are you moving in to your own house?" Mark wondered.

"'Til Baby come."

"I'm not so far from my induction time and that's still not good enough," Callie complained. "I want this kid out now. A week overdue? Really? Why was it that Sofia couldn't wait and _had _to come while you were in a coma, but this kid seems to want to stay in there?"

"They're different kids," Arizona said. "It's okay. Baby's coming tomorrow and we'll have two July babies instead of one in June and one in July."

"So I take it you still feel as bad as the last time I asked?" Mark questioned.

"Am I still pregnant?" she snapped.

"We'll go for a walk or something," Arizona said. "We'll still keep trying to convince Baby to come."

"If I can move."

* * *

They went for a walk and even ordered in spicy food for dinner, yet that did nothing but give Callie heartburn. She had to spend one more night pregnant before they arrived at the hospital early the next morning for her induction.

"I'm starting to understand why you didn't want kids at first and why you didn't really want to carry this one. You're the smart one. I'll admit it."

Arizona laughed. She had never been hesitant because she didn't want to have to go through labour. That had nothing to do with it. Still, she knew that today would be tough on her wife. Labour hadn't started just yet. She was in the very early stages of her induction. It would probably be a long day.

"Just let me know what I can do to help, okay?" she said as she kissed her.

"Contractions haven't even started."

"I know," she said. "But I have no idea what helped you the first time, so I'm a little disadvantaged here."

"Well, the epidural will help me this time," she said. "I have no reason not to get it now and I'm not going through all of that pain for fun."

"Agreed," her wife nodded. "If you can be pain free for some of this, why not?"

Dr. Nicholas came back into the room. She had been in to start the induction, but now she wanted to check on Callie to see if anything was happening yet.

"Nothing, huh?" she asked as she took a look at the contraction monitor.

"No," Callie said. "I think I'm going to be pregnant forever."

"We just have to give it some time," she assured her.

* * *

It may have taken a while for the induction to really jumpstart Callie's labour, but the pains were difficult to handle once they did start up. They had been at the hospital for seven hours now and Callie was certainly not as relaxed as she had been early that morning.

"Breathe," Arizona reminded her.

"I am," she told her.

"Good."

The doctor came back in to check on Callie's progress. She hadn't been in in a while, but now seemed like a good time. They seemed to be getting somewhere now, and she figured that the moms would like to know that.

"These are more like what I wanted to see," she confirmed as she looked at the contraction monitor. "Good."

"Can I get the epidural soon?" Callie asked. "I did this naturally last time, but there's no way I'm doing that again."

"You're doing so good," Arizona smiled.

"Says the one who isn't having the contractions," her wife said. "And don't tell me to breathe while I'm clearly trying to breathe."

"Sorry," Arizona replied, giving her a kiss. "I feel bad. You're in all of the pain and I get the same baby."

"I'll just be their favourite mom," she joked.

"I'm pretty great," she laughed. "You have some competition."

Dr. Nicholas did an exam and found that Callie was three centimeters dilated. It was decent progress considering the situation, but she told her that she would rather that the epidural not be administered until at least four centimeters. Callie understood, but she began to feel overcome by emotion all of the sudden. She knew that she was capable, but she really didn't want to have to wait for the epidural. Three centimeters after all of that time felt like nothing.

"Why the tears?" her wife asked when they were alone again. "Calliope, inductions take time."

"I've waited enough, haven't I?"

"I promise you that we'll have a baby today," she said. "That centimeter shouldn't take too much longer either. Your body's figured out this whole induction thing. Before you know it, you'll be numb and happy."

Another pain began and Callie was actually vocal through this one. Arizona didn't know if it was truly more painful or if the Latina was just stressing out right now.

"This one will stop soon," she reminded her. "You can –"

"My back is killing me," Callie complained.

Arizona was about to go and massage it when her wife stopped her. Callie didn't want her to move and that was very evident.

"Okay, I guess –"

"Your necklace is my focal point," she was able to tell her afterwards. "Don't move."

"My necklace or my cleavage?" she teased, trying to lighten the mood and hoping that Callie wouldn't snap at her.

"Necklace," she said. "I'm in too much pain to think of sexy things."

"You're talking through them. That's –"

"Not for much longer. Though, I'm pretty sure that at this point with Sofia, I was still trying to convince people that I wasn't even in labour."

"Seriously?"

"Probably. I'm not sure, but –"

"Wow."

"I still want the epidural this time."

"I know you do."

* * *

It took an hour and a half until Callie was finally able to get the epidural. Luckily Arizona had quickly gotten the hang of how to help her through each contraction. There were plenty of encouraging words, and eventually massages, but everything was going well. Especially now that the epidural was in place, they were just sitting there and waiting on Baby.

"If it's a girl, I think we should go with Catalina Danielle," Callie said. "Sofia really likes Catalina and we do, too. And Danielle could still be after your dad."

"What about yours?" she asked.

"Baby'll be a Torres."

"Okay," she replied. "And I don't want another Timothy. Not as a first name. I love the idea, but Tim is my brother. I don't think I can call anyone else that."

"Then we won't name a boy that."

"Middle name?"

"Sure."

"Augusto Timothy?"

"Sounds good," she agreed.

Callie found herself absentmindedly rubbing her belly. She realized that this would be one of the last times that she would ever do so. She was anxious to meet their new little one, but she would miss this feeling. Even if her pregnancy hadn't been much fun, she did have to admit that it was such a special experience.

"If you say anything about a baby number thr-"

"I'm not," she promised. "Are you kidding me? Pretty soon I'll be pushing this one out of my vagina. I do not want a third baby. But as happy as I am to be in labour right now, I'm never going to be pregnant again. That's so surreal."

"I knew this would happen."

"I'd get emotional?" she asked. "I'm hormonal."

She gave her a kiss.

"Believe me, I know," she smiled. "I'm so, so excited for Baby, though!"

"Me too," she replied. "Final guesses. Boy or girl?"

"I want to say boy because of how stubborn it seems to be, but Sofia's a stubborn little thing, too. So girl."

"Boy," Callie said. "A girl would have sympathized with me and come out weeks ago."

* * *

"Callie, I know it's harder with the epidural, but you have to really push," Dr. Nicholas told her four hours later.

She had been pushing for just about two hours now – and the baby was coming – but things weren't going nearly as smoothly as they expected them to. With Sofia, pushing hadn't taken long at all. This time, the epidural had made it harder. Callie couldn't feel the contractions very well. She could only feel intense pressure. She was having trouble pushing every time that she had to.

"I'm really not trying to be difficult," she said.

"You're not being difficult," she assured her. "But I just need you to push as hard as you possibly can every time we tell you to, okay?"

"Is it okay?"

"Just fine," Arizona explained, taking a look at the monitors. "Just ready to be born."

She knew that Callie had been able to push Baby down quite a lot already. She had previously delivered Sofia. She was more than able. They just had to find a way to help her do it.

"So –"

"So, you need to push," she said. "Hard. You're exhausted and this is harder than it was with Sofia. I know. You're ready to be done. Now's the time to do it."

"I'm scared."

"Everything's great."

Callie gathered all of the strength that she had left. They discovered their baby's positioning was a little strange which hadn't helped matters very much.

"The head's out," Arizona said after a while. "One more push."

"Ready?" the doctor asked as Callie's final contraction started and she pushed again.

"Ow!" Callie yelled as the baby entered the world.

"Oh my...our baby's here!" Arizona exclaimed, suddenly feeling even happier than she had imagined.

A loud cry filled the room, letting everyone know that the slight scare that had occurred hadn't actually affected the newborn's overall health. It was doing just fine.

Callie looked down at the perfect little being on her chest. The first thing that she noticed was that the baby had very dark hair, but there wasn't quite as much of it as Sofia had had at birth. Still, they looked alike other than a few subtle differences in their features.

"Hi!" she told her new child. "Oh, I'm so glad you're here! We've been waiting for you."

"We love you so much," Arizona added. She gave both of them kisses.

"Your sister is going to love you," Callie said.

It was almost as if she had been holding the baby forever. It had just been born, but already they felt so comfortable together.

"Are you a brother or a sister?" Arizona asked. "Even Mommy didn't see."

Callie looked to see that the baby was a boy. She had been correct in her last guess.

"You're our Augusto, huh?" she smiled as she kissed him.

"It's a boy?" Arizona replied as she began to tear up.

Callie nodded.

"We'll have to get your cord cut and let Mommy hold you."

Now that Augusto was there and Arizona had gotten to be a part of his arrival, Callie already felt like she had to make sure that her wife got plenty of bonding time, since that hadn't gone as planned last time either. She also couldn't wait to watch the baby boy and his mama fall in love with each other. Sofia and Arizona were each other's best friends, and there was no doubt that baby Augusto would adore her, too.

"Oh, I can't wait for that, but you did all of the work," she told her. "You get to enjoy him first."


	34. Things Are Different Now

Arizona cut Augusto's umbilical cord and the new boy just laid there on Callie's chest for a few minutes. He was doing everything that brand new babies should be, so there wasn't a rush to take him from her.

"He's really here," she smiled as she looked down at him. "I know he's a week late, so it's about time, but I still can't believe it."

"I didn't carry him, but I have to say that he was definitely worth the wait," Arizona decided.

"Yes, he was."

The blonde gave her wife another kiss. It had been mere minutes since their little man had been born, and she didn't really want this moment to end. She couldn't wait to hold her son, and to introduce him to his sister, but just watching him was so wonderful, too.

"I love you," Callie said.

"I love you, too," she replied.

"I hate to break this little moment up, but would you like to get him weighed and cleaned up now?" Dr. Nicholas questioned. "We'll get the placenta delivered and do a few sutures while he's over there."

"How many sutures?" Callie cringed.

"Probably three," she answered. "Nothing too, too bad."

"Good."

Arizona lifted the baby off of Callie's chest. Usually the nurses would handle this part, but she was obviously able to and she wanted to spend a few special moments with her brand new baby. Augusto, on the other hand, didn't seem too thrilled to be taken away from his madre.

"Oh, I like hanging out with her, too!" Arizona told him as she kissed him. "But can we get you weighed and everything? We'll be quick. It's Mommy, Silly Boy!"

Callie knew that they were only going across the room, but she couldn't help but start asking questions about the baby. She wanted to know his stats, and she wanted him returned to her as soon as possible.

"How is he?"

"Well, his reflexes are great," Mommy smiled.

Augusto had been cleaned up a little, and now Arizona was doing a few basic newborn exams. She wasn't surprised when he passed with flying colours, but it was good to know. He had also opened his eyes for a minute, and he wasn't crying as much as he had been.

"And he loves his mama," she added. "He's looking at me."

"He's probably not looking at you," Callie doubted, since his vision wouldn't be too great right now and most babies didn't even open their eyes very much at first. "He's opening his eyes."

"He's advanced," she said. "Huh, Augusto?"

"Hurry up and get him back over here," she requested.

"I will," she smiled. "How are you doing over there?"

"I'm perfect."

Once their seven pound boy was finished with all of his exams, finger and footprints, and the other routine things that he had done to him, his mom wrapped him up and brought him back over to Callie's bed. Dr. Nicholas had just finished everything up with the new mom, so she was about to leave the room.

"Congratulations," she said. "I'll be back later to check on you. You just enjoy that boy."

"We will," Arizona replied as she sat down to cuddle with Augusto. "I don't think that'll be a problem."

"I can't believe how small he is," Callie said as everyone else left the room. "Sofia was more than a pound bigger and she was born a month earlier."

"He's just fine," Arizona replied. "He's been a little one from the beginning, but he's nice and healthy. Aren't you, Baby?"

They realized that they hadn't yet taken any pictures of their son. This was fine because they had simply been meeting him, but now they needed some. They spent some time taking photos that they knew they would love having later on. Neither one of them could stop obsessing over his adorable features.

Before they knew it, it was eight o'clock at night. The plan had been for Mark to bring Sofia to the hospital as soon as they were ready, but they didn't think that this would be happening now. By this time of night, Sofia was almost always in bed already.

"Looks like you won't meet your sister until the morning," Callie said.

"That's okay," Arizona added. "We can just have some special Augusto time, too. Once your sister meets you and then once we get you home, we'll be busy, busy moms with two kids."

"Sister's birthday party is definitely going to be at Mark's," Callie decided, since their older child would be turning three in just one week.

"Yeah," she nodded. "She'll be a good sister, though. You're a lucky boy, Augusto."

* * *

That night was a long one. Arizona had never really cared for Sofia when she was that young since she had been hospitalized herself at the time. She had rested while Callie, Mark, and her parents did the work. However, she was very used to new babies and a lack of sleep thanks to her job, so it wasn't really a problem for her.

Callie was tired, but she was also still experiencing an adrenaline rush of sorts. It didn't really matter how often Augusto wanted to nurse. His nursing sessions weren't lasting long anyway; he had yet to figure out exactly how breastfeeding worked. He ate frequently that first night, but he and Callie were quickly able to drift back off to sleep right after he finished. Mommy handled the diaper changes and additional snuggles.

Callie awoke once around three in the morning to find Arizona holding the baby close as he slept against her. He had fallen asleep like this after a diaper change, and now she didn't want to put him down.

"How many times have you changed him?"

"Two," she answered. "No poop ones yet, but at least we know that he is getting something when you nurse."

"Good."

"So far he's so calm," she whispered. "He's only been here for a matter of hours, which probably doesn't mean much, but he is."

"I knew he'd either be really, really calm, or really, really fussy. He seemed to love extremes when I was pregnant."

"I know," Mommy smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"Alright," she said.

"I can't wait until Mark brings Sofia."

"Me neither."

* * *

Callie was nursing their son again much later in the morning when Mark arrived with the proud big sister. She had a blue balloon in her hand and she was wearing her "Big Sister" shirt. They could tell that she couldn't wait to meet Augusto, but they were going to have to stall her for just a few minutes because the baby was eating.

"Hi!" Arizona smiled. "How's our big girl?"

"Baby's here, Mama," she said.

"He is," she nodded. "You have a new brother. Did Daddy tell you his name?"

"No," she answered.

"Yes, I did," Mark said. "Remember? His name is Augusto."

"Or a Lina?" she asked.

"He's a boy," Callie laughed. "He's not Catalina."

"C'mere," Arizona said as Sofia noticed that Callie was nursing the baby. "Sit with me while Augusto eats."

"Baby eats now?" she questioned.

"He is eating now," she told her. "I missed you yesterday. What did you and Daddy do?"

"Umm..." she said as she climbed into her mom's lap. "See Lex."

"What did you and Daddy do with Lexie?"

"Hold Baby now?" she asked.

"Can you wait just a little?"

"Hold my baby."

"Did we go to the park yesterday?" Mark asked her.

"Yeah," she said, looking over at Callie and Augusto.

"He's almost done," Callie promised. "Can you wait a few more minutes, please?"

"No."

"Hey Sofia, is that balloon for Augusto?" Arizona questioned.

"Yep."

"You're such a thoughtful sister," she praised as she gave her a kiss. "We love you so much."

When the baby finished nursing, they put Sofia in the bed with Callie so that she could help her hold Augusto. They were sort of surprised that she didn't want her parents all to herself right now. However, they suspected that that moment would come. Some jealousy was normal. Still, if Sofia was so interested in her brother that she didn't seem too fazed by the fact that things were different now, they were going to go with that.

"Put a hand under his head," Callie instructed as she helped the little lady hold her brother for the first time. She gave her a kiss. "Good job, Sofia."

Augusto yawned.

"Wake up," Sofia told him.

"Oh, he's a very tired boy," Callie explained. "And he keeps his eyes closed a lot."

"Yeah?"

"Can you say 'hi' to him?" Arizona asked. "Say 'hi, Augusto.'"

"Hi, Augusto," she smiled.

"Is he a good brother?" Mark wondered.

"Yeah," she said.

"In a few days, he'll come home," Callie said. "You can show him his room, and your room, and all of the toys, okay?"

"No," she said.

"You don't want to?" Arizona asked, seeing the first sign of possible jealousy now. "Okay. We can."

"You're Baby's mama?" she replied.

"I am," she smiled.

"We have two kids," Callie said. "It didn't _really_ seem real until just now."

Mark laughed.

"He's perfect. Congratulations."

"Huh?" Sofia responded.

"I said congratulations," Mark told her. "Your moms are new moms again, and you're a new big sister. Congratulations."

"Say 'thanks!'" Arizona smiled. "What do you think of Augusto?"

She kissed him.

"You're a good baby," she said softly.


End file.
